SVi» 


THE 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS; 


OR, 


€{jiBg8  0,5  tjjni  mm  tjjra 
TWENTY  YEARS  AGO. 


BY  FRANK  FORESTER,  tx 

v<-t,  L J ,    f4e^vi-e^t~~ 

(f        » 

NEW     EDITION.    REVISED     AND     CORRECTED 


3Hlusti*ations  fti?  t|je 


NEW  YORK: 

STRINGER    &    TOWNSEND, 

222    BR  o  AD  WAT. 

1851. 


ENTERED,  according  to  act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  One  Thousand  Eight 
Hundred  and  Fifty,  by  STRINGER  &  TOWNSEND,  in  the  Clerk's  Office  of 
the  United  States  District  Court  for  the  Southern  District  of  New  York. 


THE  WARWICK  WOODLANDS, 

MY   FIRST   VISIT. 


DAY  THE  FIRST. 

IT  was  a  fine  October  evening  when  I  was  sitting  on  the  back 
stoop  of  his.  cheerful  little  bachelor's  establishment  in  Mercer 
street,  with  my  old  friend  and  comrade,  Henry  Archer.  Many 
a  frown  of  fortune  had  we  two  weathered  out  together ;  in  many 
of  her  brightest  smiles  had  we  two  revelled — never  was  there  a 
stauncher  friend,  a  merrier  companion,  a  keener  sportsman,  or  a 
better  fellow,  than  this  said  Harry ;  and  here  had  we  two  met, 
three  thousand  miles  from  home,  after  almost  ten  years  of 
separation,  just  the  same  careless,  happy,  dare-all  do-no-goods 
that  we  were  when  we  parted  in  St.  James's  street, — he  for  the 
West,  I  for  the  Eastern  World — he  to  fell  trees,  and  build  log 
huts  in  the  back-woods  of  Canada, — I  to  shoot  tigers  and  drink 
arrack  punch  in  the  Carnatic.  The  world  had  wagged  with  us 
as  with  most  others :  now  up,  now  down,  and  laid  us  to,  at  last, 
far  enough  from  the  goal  for  which  we  started — so  that,  as  I 
have  said  already,  on  landing  in  New  York,  having  heard 
nothing  of  him  for  ten  years,  whom  the  deuce  should  I  tumble 
on  but  that  same  worthy,  snugly  housed,  with  a  neat  bachelor's 
menage,  and  everything  ship-shape  about  him? — So,  in  the 
natural  course  of  things,  we  were  at  once  inseparables. 

Well — as  I  said  before,  it  was  a  bright  October  evening,  with 
the  clear  sky,  rich  sunshine,  and  brisk  breezy  freshness,  which 
indicate  that  loveliest  of  the  American  months, — dinner  was 
over,  and  with  a  pitcher  of  the  liquid  ruby  of  Latour,  a  brace 
of  half-pint  beakers,  and  a  score — my  contribution — of  those 
most  exquisite  of  smokables,  the  true  old  Manilla  cheroots,  we 
were  consoling  the  inward  man  in  a  way  that  would  have 
opened  the  eyes,  with  abhorrent  admiration,  of  any  advocate 


6  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

of  that  coldest  of  comforts — cold  water — who  should  have  got 
a  chance  peep  at  our  snuggery. 

Suddenly,  after  a  long  pause,  during  which  he  had  been 
stimulating  his  ideas  by  assiduous  fumigation,  blowing  off  his 
steam  in  a  long  vapory  cloud  that  curled  a  minute  afterward 
about  his  temples, — "What  say  you,  Frank,  to  a  start  to- 
morrow ?"  exclaimed  Harry, — "  and  a  week's  right  good  shoot- 
ing ?» 

"  Why,  as  for  that,"  said  I,  "  I  wish  for  nothing  better — but 
where  the  deuce  would  you  go  to  get  shooting  ?" 

"Never  fash  your  beard,  man,"  he  replied,  "I'll  find  the 
ground  and  the  game  too,  so  you'll  6nd  share  of  the  shooting ! 
—Holloa !  there— Tim,  Tim  Matlock." 

And  in  brief  space  that  worthy  minister  of  mine  host's 
pleasures  made  his  appearance,  smoothing  down  his  short  black 
hair,  clipped  in  the  orthodox  bowl  fashion,  over  his  bluff  good- 
natured  visage  with  one  hand,  while  he  employed  its  fellow  in 
hitching  up  a  pair  of  most  voluminous  unmentionables,  of  thick 
Yorkshire  cord. 

A  character  was  Tim — and  now  I  think  of  it,  worthy  of  brief 
description.  Born,  I  believe — bred,  certainly,  in  a  hunting 
stable,  far  more  of  his  life  passed  in  the  saddle  than  elsewhere, 
it  was  not  a  little  characteristic  of  my  friend  Harry  to  have 
selected  this  piece  of  Yorkshire  oddity  as  his  especial  body 
servant ;  but  if  the  choice  were  queer,  it  was  at  least  successful, 
for  an  honester,  more  faithful,  hard-working,  and  withal,  better 
hearted,  and  more  humorous  varlet  never  drew  curry-comb  over 
horse-hide,  or  clothes-brush  over  broad-cloth. 

His  visage  was,  as  I  have  said  already,  bluff  and  good-natured, 
with  a  pair  of  hazel  eyes,  of  the  smallest — but,  at  the  same 
time,  of  the  very  merriest — twinkling  from  under  the  thick 
black  eye-brows,  which  were  the  only  hairs  suffered  to  grace  his 
clean-shaved  countenance.  An  indescribable  pug  nose,  and  a 
good  clean  cut  mouth,  with  a  continual  dimple  at  the  left  corner, 
made  up  his  phiz.  For  the  rest,  four  feet  ten  inches  did  Tim 
stand  in  his  stockings,  about  two-ten  of  which  were  monopolized 
by  his  back,  the  shoulders  of  which  would  have  done  honor  to 
a  six  foot  pugilist, — his  legs,  though  short  and  bowed  a  little 
outward,  by  continual  horse  exercise,  were  right  tough  service- 
able members,  and  I  have  seen  them  bearing  their  owner  on 
through  mud  and  mire,  when  straighter,  longer,  and  more  fair 
proportioned  limbs  were  at  an  awful  discount. 


WARWICK     WOODLANDS.  7 

Depositing  Lis  hat  then  on  the  floor,  smoothing  his  hair,  and 
hitching  up  his  smalls,  and  striving  most  laboriously  not  to  grin 
till  he  should  have  -cause,  stood  Tina,  like  "  Giafar  awaiting  his 
master's  award  !" 

"Tim  !''  said  Harry  Archer — 

"SurT  said  Tim, 

*'  Tim !  Mr.  Forester  and  I  are  'talking  of  going  np  to-morrow 
— what  do  you  say  to  it  ?" 

u  Oop  yonner?"  queried  Tim,  in  the  most  extraordinary 
West- Riding  Yorkshire,  indicating  the  direction,  by  pointing  his 
right  thumb  over  his  left  shoulder — "  Weel,  Ay'se  nought  to  say 
.-aboot  k — not  Ay !" 

"  Soli !  the  cattk  are  all  right,  .and  the  wagon  in  good  trim, 
and  the  dogs  in  exercise,  are  they  ?7t 

"Ay'se  warrant  um !" 

"  Well,  then,  have  all  ready  for  a  start  at  six  to-morrow, — 
put  Mr.  Forester's  Manton  alongside  my  Joe  Spurling  in  the 
top  tray  of  the  case,  my  single  gun  and  my  double  rifle  in  the 
lower,  and  see  the  magazine  well  filled — the  Diamond  gun- 
powder, you  know,  from  Mr.  Brought  Yau'll  put  up  what 
Mr.  Forester  will  want,  for  a  week,  yoti  know — he  does  not 
know  the  -country  yet,  Tim  ; — and,  hark  you,  what  wine  have  I 
at  Tom  Draw's  3" 

"  No  but  a  case  of  claret" 

•"  I  thought  so,  then  away  with  you  !  down  to  the  Baron's 
-and  get  two  baskets  of  the  Star,  and  stop  at  Fulton  Market,  and 
get  the  best  half  hundred  round  of  spiced  beef  you  -can  find — 
and  then  go  up  to  Starke's  at  the  Octagon,  and  get  a  gallon 
of  his  old  Ferintosh — that's  all,  Tim — off  wife  you! — No  I  stop 
a  minute  1"  and  he  filled  up  a  beaker  and  handed  it  to  the 
original,  who,  shutting  both  his  eyes,  suffered  the  fragrant  claret 
to  roll  down  his  gullet  in  the  most  scientific  fashion,  and  then, 
with  what  he  called  a  bow,  turned  right  about,  and  exit. 

The  sun  rose  blight  on  the  next  morning,  and  half  an  hour 
before  the  appointed  time,  Tim  entered  my  bed-chamber,  with 
a  cup  of  mocha,  and  the  intelligence  that  u  Measter  had  been 
oop  this  hour  and  better,  and  did  na  like  to  be  kept  waiting  !"- 
ao  up  I  jumped,  and  scarcely  had  got  through  the  business  of 
rigging  myself,  before  the  rattle  of  wheels  announced  the  arrival 
of  the  wagon. 

And  a  model  was  that  shooting  wagon — a  long,  light-bodied 
box,  with  a  low  rail — a  high  seat  and  dash  in  front,  and  a  low 


8  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

servant's  seat  behind,  with  lots  of  room  for  four  men  and  as 
many  dogs,  with  guns  and  luggage,  and  all  appliances  to  boot, 
enough  to  last  a  month,  stowed  away  out  of  sight,  and  out  of 
reach  of  weather.  The  nags,  both  nearly  thorough-bred,  fifteen 
two  inches  high,  stout,  clean-limbed,  active  animals — the  off-side 
horse  a  gray,  almost  snow-white — the  near,  a  dark  chestnut,  near- 
ly black — with  square  docks  setting  admirably  off  their  beautiful 
round  quarters,  high  crests,  small  blood-like  heads,  and  long 
thin  manes — spoke  volumes  for  Tim's  stable  science;  for  though 
their  ribs  were  slightly  visible,  their  muscles  were  well  filled, 
and  hard  as  granite.  Their  coats  glanced  in  the  sunshine — the 
white's  like  statuary  marble ;  the  chestnut's  like  high  polished 
copper — in  short  the  whole  turn-out  was  perfect. 

The  neat  black  harness,  relieved  merely  by  a  crest,  with  every 
strap  that  could  be  needed,  in  its  place,  and  not  one  buckle  or 
one  thong  superfluous ;  the  bright  steel  curbs,  with  the  chains 
jingling  as  the  horses  tossed  and  pawed  impatient  for  a  start ; 
the  tapering  holly  whip  ;  the  bear-skins  covering  the  seats  ;  the 
top-coats  spread  above  them — every  thing,  in  a  word,  without 
bordering  on  the  slang,  was  perfectly  correct  and  gnostic. 

Four  dogs — a  brace  of  setters  of  the  light  active  breed,  one 
of  which  will  out-work  a  brace  of  the  large,  lumpy,  heavy- 
headed  dogs, — one  reel,  the  other  white  and  liver,  both  with 
black  noses,  their  legs  and  sterns  beautifully  feathered,  and  their 
hair,  glossy  and  smooth  as  silk,  showing  their  excellent  condition 
— and  a  brace  of  short-legged,  bony,  liver-colored  spaniels — 
with  their  heads  thrust  one  above  the  other,  over  or  through 
the  railings,  and  their  tails  waving  with  impatient  joy — occupied 
the  after  portion  of  the  wagon. 

Tim,  rigged  in  plain  gray  frock,  with  leathers  and  white  tops, 
stood,  in  true  tiger  fashion,  at  the  horses'  heads,  with  the  fore- 
finger of  his  right  hand  resting  upon  the  curb  of  the  gray  horse, 
as  with  his  left  he  rubbed  the  nose  of  the  chestnut;  while 
Harry,  cigar  in  mouth,  was  standing  at  the  wheel,  reviewing 
with  a  steady  and  experienced  eye  the  gear,  which  seemed  to 
give  him  perfect  satisfaction.  The  moment  I  appeared  on  the 
steps, 

"In  with  you,  Frank — in  with  you,"  he  exclaimed,  disengag- 
ing the  hand-reins  from  the  terrets  into  which  they  had  been 
thrust,  "  I  have  been  waiting  here  these  five  minutes.  Jump 
up,  Tim !" 

And,  gathering  the  reins  up  firmly,  he  mounted  by  the  wheel, 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  9 

tucked  the  top-coat  about  his  legs,  shook  out  the  long  lash  of 
his  tandem  whip,  and  lapped  it  up  in  good  style. 

"I  always  drive  with  one  of  these77 — he  said,  half  apologeti- 
cally, as  I  thought — "  they  are  so  handy  on  the  road  for  the 
cur  dogs,  when  you  have  setters  with  you — they  plague  your 
life  out  else.  Have  you  the  pistol-case  in,  Tim,  for  I  don't  see 
it?" 

"All  raight,  sur,"  answered  he,  not  over  well  pleased,  as  it 
seemed,  that  it  should  even  be  suspected  that  he  could  have 
forgotten  any  thing — "All  raight !" 

"  Go  along,  then,"  cried  Harry,  and  at  the  word  the  high 
bred  nags  went  off;  and  though  my  friend  was  too  good  and 
too  old  a  hand  to  worry  his  cattle  at  the  beginning  of  a  long 
day's  journey — many  minutes  had  not  passed  before  we  found 
ourselves  on  board  the  ferry-boat,  steaming  it  merrily  towards 
the  Jersey  shore. 

"A  quarter  past  six  to  the  minute,"  said  Harry,  as  we  landed 
at  Hoboken. 

"  Let  Shot  and  Chase  run,  Tim,  but  keep  the  spaniels  in  till 
we  pass  Hackensack." 

"Awa  wi  ye,  ye  rascals,"  exclaimed  Tim,  and  out  went  the 
high  blooded  dogs  upon  the  instant,  yelling  and  jumping  in 
delight  about  the  horses — and  off  we  went,  through  the  long 
sandy  street  of  Hoboken,  leaving  the  private  race-course  of 
that  stanch  sportsman,  Mr.  Stevens,  on  the  left,  with  several 
powerful  horses  taking  their  walking  exercise  in  their  neat  body 
clothes. 

*'  That  puts  me  in  mind,  Frank,"  said  Harry,  as  he  called  my 
attention  to  the  thorough-breds,  "we  must  be  back  next  Tuesday 
for  the  Beacon  Races — the  new  course  up  there  on  the  hill ; 
you  can  see  the  steps  that  lead  to  it — and  now  is  not  this 
lovely?"  he  continued,  as  we  mounted  the  first  ridge  of  Wee- 
hawken,  and  looked  back  over  the  beautiful  broad  Hudson, 
gemmed  with  a  thousand  snowy  sails  of  craft  or  shipping — "  Is 
not  this  lovely,  Frank  ?  and,  by  the  by,  you  will  say,  when  we 
get  to  our  journey's  end,  you  never  drove  through  prettier 
scenery  in  your  life.  Get  away,  Bob,  you  villain — nibbling, 
nibbling  at  your  curb  !  get  away,  lads  !" 

And  away  we  went  at  a  right  rattling  pace  over  the  hills, 
and  through  the  cedar  swamp ;  and,  passing  through  a  toll- 
gate,  stopped  with  a  sudden  jerk  at  a  long  low  tavern  on  the 
left-hand  side. 


10  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

11  We  must  stop  here,  Frank.  My  old  friend,  Ingliss,  a  bro- 
ther trigger,  too,  would  think  the  world  was  coming  to  an  end 
if  I  drove  by — twenty-nine  minutes  these  six  miles,"  he  added, 
looking  at  his  watch,  "that  will  do  !  Now,  Tim,  look  sharp — 
just  a  sup  of  water !  Good  day — good  day  to  you,  Mr.  In- 
gliss ;  now  for  a  glass  of  your  milk  punch" — and  mine  host 
disappeared,  and  in  a  moment  came  forth  with  two  rummers  of 
the  delicious  compound,  a  big  bright  lump  of  ice  bobbing  about 
in  each  among  the  nutmeg. 

"  What,  off  again  for  Orange  county,  Mr.  Archer  ?  I  was 
telling  the  old  woman  yesterday  that  we  should  have  you  by 
before  long ;  well,  you'll  find  cock  pretty  plenty,  I  expect ;  there 
was  a  chap  by  here  from  Ulster — let  me  see,  what  day  was  it — 
Friday,  I  guess — with  produce,  and  he  was  telling,  they  have  had 
no  cold  snap  yet  up  there  !  Thank  you,  sir,  good  luck  to  you  1" 
And  off  we  went  again,  along  a  level  road,  crossing  the  broad, 
slow  river  from  whence  it  takes  its  name,  into  the  town  of  Hack- 
ensack. 

"  We  breakfast  here,  Frank" — as  he  pulled  up  beneath  the 
low  Dutch  shed  projecting  over  half  the  road  in  front  of  the 
neat  tavern — "  How  are  you,  Mr.  Vanderbeck — we  want  a  beef- 
steak, and  a  cup  of  tea,  as  quick  as  you  can  give  it  us ;  we'll 
make  the  tea  ourselves ;  bring  in  the  black  tea,  Tim — the  nags 
as  usual." 

"  Aye  !  aye  !  sur" — "  tak  them  out — leave  t'  harness  on,  all 
but  their  bridles" — to  an  old  gray-headed  hostler.  "  Whisp  off 
their  legs  a  bit ;  Ay  will  be  oot  enoo !" 

After  as  good  a  breakfast  as  fresh  eggs,  good  country  bread — 
worth  ten  times  the  poor  trash  of  city  bakers — prime  butter, 
cream,  and  a  fat  steak  could  furnish,  at  a  cheap  rate,  and  with 
a  civil  and  obliging  landlord,  away  we  went  again  over  the  red- 
hills — an  infernal  ugly  road,  sandy,  and  rough,  and  stony — for 
ten  miles  farther  to  New  Prospect. 

"  Now  you  shall  see  some  scenery  worth  looking  at,"  said 
Harry,  as  we  started  again,  after  watering  the  horses,  and  taking 
in  a  bag  with  a  peck  of  oats — "  to  feed  at  three  o'clock,  Frank, 
when  we  stop  to  grub,  which  must  do  al  fresco — "  my  friend 
explained — "  for  the  landlord,  who  kept  the  only  tavern  on  the 
road,  went  West  this  summer,  bit  by  the  land  mania,  and  there 
is  now  no  stopping  place  'twixt  this  and  Warwick,"  naming  the 
village  for  which  we  were  bound.  "  You  ffot  that  beef  boiled, 
Tim  ?" 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  11 

ft  Ay'd  been  a  fouil  else,  and  aye  so  often  oop  t'  road  too,"  an- 
swered he  with  a  grin,  "  and  C  moostard  is  mixed,  and  t'  pilot 
biscuit  in,  and  a  good  bit  o'  Cheshire  cheese-!  wee's  doo,  Ay 
reckon.  Ha!  hal  hal" 

And  now  my  friend's  boast  was  indeed  fulfilled;  for  when  we 
had  driven  a  few  miles  farther,  the  country  became  undulating, 
with  many  and  bright  streams  of  water ;  the  hill  sides  clothed 
with  luxuriant  woodlands,  now  in  their  many-colored  garb  of 
autumn  beauty  ;  the  meadow-land  rich  in  unchanged  fresh 
greenery — for  the  summer  had  been  mild  and  rainy — with  here 
and  there  a  buckwheat  stubble  showing  its  ruddy  face,  replete 
with  promise  of  quail  in  the  present,  and  of  hot  cakes  in  future ; 
and  the  bold  chain  of  mountains,  which,  under  many  names, 
but  always  beautiful  and  wild,  sweeps  from  the  Highlands  of 
the  Hudson,  west  and  southwardly,  quite  through  New  Jersey, 
Conning  a  link  between  the  White  and  Green  Mountains  of  New 
Hampshire  and  Vermont,  and  the  more  famous  Alleghanies  of 
the  South. 

A  few  miles  farther  yet,  the  road  wheeled  round  the  base  of 
the  Tourne  Mountain,  a  magnificent  bold  hill,  with  a  bare  craggy 
head,  its  sides  and  skirts  thick  set  with  cedars  and  hickory — en- 
tering a  defile  through  which  the  liamapo,  one  of  the  loveliest 
streams  eye  ever  looked  upon,  comes  rippling  with  its  crystal 
waters  over  bright  pebbles,  on  its  way  to  join  the  two  kindred 
rivulets  which  form  the  fair  Passaic.  Throughout  the  whole  of 
that  defile,  nothing  -can  possibly  surpass  the  loveliness  of  nature  ; 
the  road  hard,  and  smooth,  arid  level,  winding  and  wheeling 
parallel  to  the  gurgling  river,  crossing  it  two  or  three  times  in 
each  mile,  now  on  one  side,  and  now  on  the  other — the  valley 
now  barely  broad  enough  to  permit  the  highway  and  the  stream 
•to  pass  between  the  abrupt  masses  of  rock  and  forest,  and  now 
expanding  into  rich  basins  of  green  meadow-land,  the  deepest 
and  most  fertile  possible — the  hills  of  every  shape  and  size — 
here  bold,  and  bare,  and  rocky — there  swelling  up  in  grand 
round  masses,  pile  above  pile  of  verdure,  to  the  blue  firmament 
of  autumn.  By  and  by  we  drove  through  a  thriving  little  vil- 
lage, nestling  in  a  hollow  of  the  hills,  beside  a  broad  bright 
pond,  whose  waters  keep  a  dozen  manufactories  of  cotton  and 
of  iron — with  which  mineral  these  hills  abound — in  constant 
operation ;  and  passing  by  the  tavern,  the  departure  of  whose 
owner  Harry  had  so  patheticallly  mourned,  we  wheeled  again 
round  a  projecting  spur  of  hill  into  a  narrower  defile,  and  reached 
1* 


12  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

another  hamlet,  far  different  in  its  aspect  from  the  busy  bustling 
place  we  had  left  some  five  miles  behind* 

There  were  some  twenty  houses,  with  two  large  mills  of  solid 
masonry  ;  but  of  these  not  one  building  was  now  tenanted  ;  the 
roof- trees  broken,  the  doors  and  shutters  either  torn  from  their 
hinges,  or  flapping  wildly  to  and  fro ;  the  mill  wheels  cumber- 
ing the  stream  with  masses  of  decaying  timber,  and  the  whole 
presenting  a  most  desolate  and  mournful  aspect. 

"Its  story  is  soon  told,"  Harry  said,  catching  my  inquiring 
glance — "  a  speculating,  clever  New  York  merchant — a  water- 
power — a  failure — and  a  consequent  desertion  of  the  project ; 
but  we  must  find  a  birth  among  the  ruins !" 

And  as  he  spoke,  turning  a  little  off  the  road,  he  pulled  up 
on  the  green  sward  ;  "  there's  an  old  stable  here  that  has  a 
manger  in  it  yet !  Now,  Tim,  look  sharp !" 

And  in  a  twinkling  the  horses  were  loosed  from  the  wagon, 
the  harness  taken  off  and  hanging  on  the  corners  of  the  ruined 
hovels,  and  Tim  hissing  and  rubbing  away  at  the  gray  horse, 
while  Harry  did  like  duty  on  the  chestnut,  in  a  style  that  would 
have  done  no  shame  to  Melton  Mowbray  ! 

"  Come,  Frank,  make  yourself  useful !  Get  out  the  round  of 
beef,  and  all  the  rest  of  the  provant — it's  on  the  rack  behind ; 
you'll  find  all  right  there.  Spread  our  table-cloth  on  that  flat 
stone  by  the  waterfall,  under  the  willow ;  clap  a  couple  of  bot- 
tles of  the  Baron's  champagne  into  the  pool  there  underneath 
the  fall ;  let's  see  whether  your  Indian  campaigning  has  taught 
you  anything  worth  knowing  !" 

To  work  1  went  at  once,  and  by  the  time  I  had  got  through 
— "  Come,  Tim,''  I  heard  him  say,  "  I've  got  the  rough  dirt  off 
this  fellow,  you  must  polish  him,  while  I  take  a  wash,  and  get  a 
bit  of  dinner.  Holloa  !  Frank,  are  you  ready  1" 

And  he  came  bounding  down  to  the  water's  edge,  with  his 
Newmarket  coat  in  hand,  and  sleeves  rolled  up  to  the  elbows, 
plunged  his  face  into  the  cool  stream,  and  took  a  good  wash  of 
his  soiled  hands  in  the  same  natural  basin.  Five  minutes  after- 
ward we  were  employed  most  pleasantly  with  the  spiced  beef, 
white  biscuit,  and  good  wine,  which  came  out  of  the  waterfall  as 
cool  as  Gunter  could  have  made  it  with  all  his  icing.  When  we 
had  pretty  well  got  through,  and  were  engaged  with  our  che- 
roots, up  came  Tim  Matlock. 

"  1'  horses  have  got  through  wi'  t'  corn — they  have  fed  rare- 


WARWICK  WOODLANDS.  IS 

ly — so  I  harnessed  them,  sur,  all  to  the  bridles — we  can  start 
when  you  will." 

u  Sit  clown,  and  get  your  dinner  then,  sir — there's  a  heel-tap 
in  that  bottle  we  have  left  for  you — and  when  you  have  done, 
put  up  the  things,  and  we'll  be  off.  I  say,  Frank,  let  us  try  a 
shot  with  the  pistols — I'll  get  the  case — stick  up  that  fellow- 
commoner  upon  the  fence  there,  and  mark  off*  a  twenty  paces." 

The  marking  irons  were  produced,  and  loaded — "Fire — one 
two — three" — bang  I  and  the  shivering  of  the  glass  announced 
that  never  more  would  that  chap  hold  the  generous  liquor ;  the 
ball  had  struck  it  plump  in  the  centre,  and  broken  off  the  whole 
above  the  shoulder,  for  it  was  fixed  neck  downward  on  the  stake. 

"  It  is  my  turn  now,"  said  I ;  and  more  by  luck,  I  fancy,  than 
by  skill,  I  took  the  neck  off,  leaving  nothing  but  the  thick  ring 
of  the  mouth  still  sticking  on  the  summit  of  the  fence. 

"  I'll  hold  you  a  dozen  of  my  best  Regalias  against  as  many 
of  Manillas,  that  I  break  the  ring." 

"  Done,  Harry  !" 

"  Done  !" 

Again  the  pistol  cracked,  and  the  unerring  ball  drove  the 
small  fragment  into  a  thousand  splinters. 

"That  fotched  'urn!"  exclaimed  Tim,  who  had  come  up  to 
announce  all  ready.  "  Ecod,  measter  Frank,  you  munna  wager 
i'  that  gate*  wi'  master,  or  my  name  beant  Tim,  but  thou'lt  be 
clean  bamboozled." 

Well,  not  to  make  a  short  story  long,  we  got  under  way 
again,  and,  with  speed  unabated,  spanked  along  at  full  twelve 
miles  an  hour  for  live  miles  farther.  There,  down  a  wild  look- 
ing glen,  on  the  left  hand,  comes  brawling,  over  stump  and  stone, 
a  tributary  streamlet,  by  the  side  of  which  a  rough  track,  made 
by  the  charcoal  burners  and  the  iron  miners,  intersects  the  main 
road  ;  and  up  this  miserable  looking  path,  for  it  was  little  more, 
Harry  wheeled  at  full  trot. 

"  Now  for  twelve  miles  of  mountain,  the  roughest  road  and 
wildest  country  you  ever  saw  crossed  in  a  phaeton,  good  master 
Frank/' 

And  wild  it  was,  indeed,  and  rough  enough  in  all  conscience ; 
narrow,  unfenced  in  many  places,  winding  along  the  brow  of 
precipices  without  rail  or"  breast-work,  encumbered  with  huge 
blocks  of  stone,  and  broken  by  the  summer  rains  !  An  English 

*  Gate— Yorkshire !     Anglice,  way  I 


14  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

stage  coachman  would  have  stared  aghast  at  the  steep  zigzags 
up  the  hills,  the  awkward  turns  on  the  descents,  the  sudden 
pitches,  with  now  an  unsafe  bridge,  and  now  a  stony  ford  at  the 
bottom  ;  but  through  all  this,  the  delicate  quick  finger,  keen 
eye,  and  cool  head  of  Harry,  assisted  by  the  rare  mouths  of  his 
exquisitely  bitted  cattle,  piloted  us  at  the  rate  of  full  ten  miles 
the  hour ;  the  scenery,  through  which  the  wild  track  ran,  being 
entirely  of  the  most  wild  and  savage  character  of  woodland ;  the 
bottom  filled  with  gigantic  timber  trees,  cedar,  and  pine,  and 
hemlock,  with  a  dense  undergrowth  of  rhododendron,  calmia, 
and  azalia,  which,  as  my  friend  informed  me,  made  the  whole 
mountains  in  the  summer  season  one  rich  bed  of  bloom.  About, 
six  miles  from  the  point  Where  we  had  entered  them  we  scaled 
the  highest  ridge  of  the  hills,  by  three  almost  precipitous  zig- 
zags, the  topmost  ledge  paved  by  a  stratum  of  broken  shaley 
limestone ;  and,  passing  at  once  from  the  forest  into  well  culti- 
vated fields,  came  o«  a  new  and  lovelier  prospect — a  narrow 
deep  vale  scarce  a  mile  in  breadth- — scooped,  as  it  were,  out  of 
the  mighty  mountains  which  embosomed  it  on  every  side — in 
the  highest  state  of  culture,  with  rich  orchards,  and  deep  mead- 
ows, and  brown  stubbles,  whereon  the  shocks  of  maize  stood 
fair  and  frequent;  and  westward  of  the  road,  which,  diving 
down  obliquely  to  the  bottom,  loses  itself  in  the  woods  of  the 
opposite  hill-side,  and  only  becomes  visible  again  when  it 
emerges  to  cross  over  the  next  summit — the  loveliest  sheet  of 
water  my  eyes  has  ever  seen,  varying  from  half  a  mile  to  a  mile 
in  breadth,  and  about  five  miles  long,  with  shores  indented 
deeply  with  the  capes  and  promontories  of  the  wood-clothed 
hills,  which  sink  abruptl}'  to  its  very  margin. 

4i  That  is  the  Greenwood  Lake,  Frank,  called  by  the  monsters 
here  Long  Pond ! — 'the  fiends  receive  their  souls  therefor/ as 
Walter  Scott  says — in  my  mind  prettier  than  Lake  George  by 
far,  though  known  to  few  except  chance  sportsmen  like  myself! 
Full  of  fish,  perch  of  a  pound  in  weight,  and  yellow  bass  in  the 
deep  waters,  and  a  good  sprinkling  of  trout,  towards  this  end  1 
Ellis  Ketchurn  killed  a  five-pounder  there  this  spring  !  and 
heaps  of  summer-duck,  the  loveliest  in  plumage  of  the  genus, 
and  the  best  too,  me  judice,  excepting  only  the  inimitable  can- 
vass-back. There  are  a  few  deer,  too,  in  the  hills,  though  they 
are  getting  scarce  of  late  years,  There,  from  that  headland,  I 
killed  one,  three  summers  since ;  I  was  placed  at  a  stand  by  the 
lake's  edge,  and  the  dogs  drove  him  right  down  to  me ;  but  I 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  15 

got  too  eager,  and  he  heard  or  saw  me,  and  so  fetched  a  turn ; 
but  they  were  close  upon  him,  and  the  day  was  hot,  and  he 
was  forced  to  soil.  I  never  saw  him  till  he  was  in  the  act  of 
leaping  from  a  bluff  of  ten  or  twelve  feet  into  the  deep  lake,  but 
I  pitched  up  my  rifle  at  him,  a  snap  shot !  as  1  would  my  gun 
at  a  cock  in  a  summer  brake,  and  by  good  luck  sent  my  ball 
through  his  heart.  There  is  a  finer  view  yet  when  we  cross 
this  hiil,  the  Bellevale  mountain ;  look  out,  for  we  are  just  upon 
it;  there!  Now  admire  P 

And  on  the  summit  he  pulled  up,  and  never  did  I  see  a  land- 
scape more  extensively  magnificent.  Ridge  after  ridge  the 
mountain  sloped  down  from  our  feet  into  a  vast  rich  basin  ten 
miles  at  least  in  breadth,  by  thirty,  if  not  more,  in  length,  gir- 
dled on  every  side  by  mountains — the  whole  diversified  with 
wood  and  water,  meadow,  and  pasture-land,  and  corn-field — 
studded  with  small  white  villages — with  more  than  one  bright 
lakelet  glittering  like  beaten  gold  in  the  declining  sun,  and  several 
isolated  hills  standing  up  boldly  from  the  vale  ! 

"  Glorious  indeed  !     Most  glorious  !"  I  exclaimed. 

"  Right,  Frank,"  he  said  ;  "  a  man  may  travel  many  a  day, 
and  not  see  any  thing  to  beat  the  vale  of  Sugar-loaf — so  named 
from  that  cone-like  lull,  over  the  pond  there — that  peak  is  eight 
hundred  feet  above  tide  water.  Those  blue  hills,  to  the  far 
right,  are  the  Hudson  Highlands  ;  that  bold  bluff  is  the  far- 
famed  Anthony's  Nose  ;  that  ridge  across  the  vale,  the  second 
ridge  I  mean,  is  the  Shawariguuks  ;  and  those  three  rounded 
summits,  farther  yet — those  are  the  Kaatskills  !  But  now  a 
truce  with  the  romantic,  for  there  lies  Warwick,  and  this  keen 
mountain  air  has  found  me  a  fresh  appetite !" 

Away  we  went  again,  rattling  down  the  hills,  nothing  daunted 
at  their  steep  pitches,  with  the  nags  just  as  fresh  as  when  they 
started,  champing  and  snapping  at  their  curbs,  till  on  a  table- 
land above  the  brook,  with  the  tin  steeple  of  its  church  peering 
from  out  the  massy  foliage  of  sycamore  and  locust,  the  haven 
of  our  journey  lay  before  us. 

"  Hilloa,  hill-oa  ho  !  whoop  !  who-whoop  !"  and  with  a  cheery 
shout,  as  we  clattered  across  the  wooden  bridge,  he  roused  out 
half  the  population  of  the  village. 

"Ya  ha  ha! — ya  yah  !"  yelled  a  great  woolly-headed  coal- 
black  negro.  "  Here  'm  massa  Archer  back  again — massa  ben 
well,  I  spect — 

"  Well— to  be  sure  I  have,  Sam,"  cried  Harry.     "  How's  old 


16 

Poll  ?  Bid  her  come  up  to  Draw's  to-morrow  night — I've  got 
a  red  and  yellow  frock  for  her — a  deuce  of  a  concern  !" 

"  Yah  ha  !  yah  ha  ha  yaah  I"  and  amid  a  most  discordant 
chorus  of  African  merriment,  we  passed  by  a  neat  farm-house 
shaded  by  two  glorious  locusts  on  the  right,  and  a  new  red 
brick  mansion,  the  pride  of  the  village,  with  a  flourishing  store 
on  the  left — and  wheeled  up  to  the  famous  Tom  Draw's  tavern 
- — a  long  white  house  with  a  piazza  six  feet  wide,  at  the  top  of 
eight  steep  steps,  and  a  one-story  kitchen  at  the  end  of  it ;  a 
pump  with  a  gilt  pine-apple  at  the  top  of  it,  and  horse-trough  ; 
a  wagon  shed  and  stable  sixty  feet  long  ;  a  sign-post  with  an 
indescribable  female  figure  swinging  upon  it,  and  an  ice  house 
over  the  way  ! 

Such  was  the  house,  before  which  we  pulled  up  just  as  the 
sun  was  setting,  amid  a  gabbling  of  ducks,  a  barking  of  terri- 
ers, mixed  with  the  deep  bay  of  two  or  three  large  heavy  fox- 
hounds which  had  been  lounging  about  in  the  shade,  and  a 
peal  of  joyous  welcome  from  all  beings,  quadruped  or  biped, 
within  hearing. 

"  Hulloa !  boys  !''  cried  a  deep  hearty  voice  from  within  the 
bar-room.  "  Hulloa  !  boys  !  Walk  in  !  walk  in  !  What  the 
eternal  h — 11  are  you  about  there  ?" 

Wrell,  we  did  walk  into  a  large  neat  bar-room,  with  a  bright 
hickory  log  crackling  upon  the  hearth-stone,  a  large  round  table 
in  one  corner,  covered  with  draught-boards,  and  old  newspapers, 
among  which  showed  pre-eminent  the  "  Spirit  of  the  Times  ;" 
a  range  of  pegs  well  stored  with  great-coats,  fishing-rods,  whips, 
game-bags,  spurs,  and  every  other  stray  appurtenance  of  sport- 
ing, gracing  one  end  ;  while  the  other  was  more  gaily  decorated 
by  the  well  furnished  bar,  in  the  right-hand  angle  of  which  my 
eye  detected  in  an  instant  a  handsome  nine  pound  double  barrel, 
an  old  six  foot  Queen  Ann's  tower-musket,  and  a  long  smooth- 
bored  rifle  ;  and  last,  not  least,  outstretched  at  easy  length  upon 
the  counter  of  his  bar,  to  the  left-hand  of  the  gang-way — the 
right  side  being  more  suitably  decorated  with  tumblers,  and  de- 
canters of  strange  compounds — supine,  with  fair  round  belly 
towering  upward,  and  head  voluptuously  pillowed  on  a  heap  of 
wagon  cushions — lay  in  his  glory — but  no  !  hold  ! — the  end  of 
a  chapter  is  no  place  to  introduce — Tom  Draw  !* 

*  It  ia  almost  a  painful  task  to  read  over  and  revise  this  chapter.  The 
"  twenty  years  ago"  is  too  keenly  visible  to  the  mind's  eye  in  every  line.  Of 


WARWICK   WOODLAND'S. 


DAY  THE  SECOND. 

MUCH  as  I  had  heard  of  Tom  Draw,  I  was  I  must  confess, 
taken  altogether  aback  when  I,  for  the  first  time,  set  eyes  upon 
him.  I  had  heard  Harry  Archer  talk  of  him  fifty  times  as  a 
crack  shot ;  as  a  top  sawyer  at  a  long  day's  fag  ;  as  the  man  of 
all  others  he  would  choose  as  his  mate,  if  he  were  to  shoot  a 
match,  two  against  two — what  then  was  my  astonishment  at 
beholding  this  worthy,  as  he  reared  himself  slowly  from  his  re- 
cumbent position  ?  It  is  tiue,  I  had -heard  his  sobriquet,  "  Fat 
Tom,"  but,  Heaven  and  Earth  !  such  a  mass  of  beef  and  brandy 
as  stood  before  me,  I  had  never  even  dreamt  of.  About  five 
feet  six  inches  at  the  very  utmost  in  the  perpendicular,  by  six 
or — "  by'r  lady" — nearer  seven  in  circumference,  weighing,  at 
the  least  computation,  two  hundred  and  fifty  pounds,  with  a 
broad  jolly  face,  its  every  feature — well-formed  and  handsome, 
rather  than  otherwise — mantling  with  an  expression  of  the  most 
perfect  excellence  of  heart  and  temper,  and  overshadowed  by  a 
vast  mass  of  brown  hair,  sprinkled  pretty  well  with  gray  ! — 
Down  he  plumped  from  the  counter  with  a  thud  that  made  the 
whole  floor  shake,  and  with  a  hand  outstretched,  that  might 
have  done  for  a  Goliah,  out  he  strode  to  meet  us. 

"  Why,  hulloa  !  hulloa  !  Mr.  Archer,"  shaking  his  hand  till 
I  thought  he  would  have  dragged  the  arm  clean  out  of  the 
socket — "  How  be  you,  boy  ?  How  be  you  ?" 

"Right  well,  Tom,  can't  you  see?  Why  confound  you, 
you've  grown  twenty  pound  heavier  since  July  ! — but  here,  I'm 

the  persons  mentioned  in  its  pages,  more  than  one  have  passed  away  from 
our  world  forever ;  and  even  the  natural  features  of  rock,  wood,  and  river, 
in  other  countries  so  vastly  more  enduring  than  their  perishable  owners, 
have  been  so  much  altered  by  the  march  of  improvement,  Heaven  save 
the  mark !  that  the  traveller  up  the  Erie  railroad,  will  certainly  not  recog- 
nise in  the  description  of  the  vale  of  Ramapo,  the  hill-sides  all  denuded  of 
their  leafy  honors,  the  bright  streams  dammed  by  unsightly  mounds  and 
changed  into  foul  stagnant  pools,  the  snug  country  tavern  deserted  for  a 
huge  hideous  barnlike  depot,  and  all  the  lovely  sights  and  sweet  harmo- 
nies of  nature  defaced  and  drowned  by  the  deformities  consequent  on  a 
railroad,  by  the  disgusting  roar  and  screech  of  the  steam-engine. 

One  word  to  the  wise !  Let  no  man  be  deluded  by  the  following  pages, 
into  the  setting  forth  for  Warwick  now  in  search  of  sporting.  These  things 
are  strictly  as  they  were  twenty  years  ago  !  Mr.  Seward,  in  his  zeal  for  the 
improvement  of  Chatauque  and  Cattaraugus,  has  certainly  destroyed  the 
cock-shooting  of  Orange  county.  A  sportsman's  benison  to  him  therefor  \ 


18  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

losing  all  my  manners ! — this  is  Frank  Forester,  whom  you 
have  heard  me  talk  about  so  often !  He  dropped  down  here 
out  of  the  moon,  Tom,  I  believe  !  at  least  I  thought  about  as 
much  of  seeing  the  man  in  the  moon,  as  of  meeting  him  in 
this  wooden  country — but  here  he  is,  as  you  see,  come  all  the 
way  to  take  a  look  at  the  natives:  And  so,  you  see,  as  you're 
about  the  greatest  curiosity  I  know  of  in  these  parts,  I  brought 
him  straight  up  here  to  take  a  peep  !  Look  at  him,  Frank — 
look  at  him  well '!  Now,  did  you  ever  see,  in  all  your  life,  so 
extraordinary  an  old  devil? — and  yet,  Frank,  which  no  man 
could  possibly  believe,  the  old  fat  animal  has  some  good  points 
about  him — he  can  walk  some  /  shoot,  as  he  says,  first  best  ! 
and  drink — good  Lord,  how  he  can  drink  !" 

u  And  that  reminds  me,"  exclaimed  Tom,  who  with  a  ludi- 
crous mixture  of  pleasure,  bashfulness,  and  mock  anger,  had 
been  listening  to  what  he  evidently  deemed  a  high  encomium  ; 
"  that  we  hav'nt  drinked  yet ;  have  you  quit  drink,  Archer, 
since  I  was  to  York  ?  What'll  you  take,  Mr.  Forester  ?  Gin  1 
yes,  I  have  got  some  prime  gin  !  You  never  sent  me  up  them 
groceries  though,  Archer ;  well,  then,  here's  luck !  What, 
Yorkshire,  is  that  you  ?  I  should  ha'  thought  now,  Archer, 
you'd  have  cleared  that  lazy  Injun  out  afore  this  time  !'' 

"  Whoy,  measter  Draa — what  'na  loike's  that  kind  o'talk  ? — 
coom  coom  now,  where'Il  Ay  tak  t'  things  tull  ?" 

"  Put  Mr.  Forester's  box  in  the  bed-room  off  the  parlor — mine 
up  stairs,  as  usual,"  cried  Archer.  "  Look  sharp  and  get  the 
traps  out.  Now,  Tom,  I  suppose  you  have  got  no  supper 
for  us  ?" 

"  Cooper,  Cooper !  you  snooping  little  devil,"  yelled  Tom, 
addressing  his  second  hope,  a  fine  dark-eyed,  bright-looking  lad 
of  ten  or  twelve  years  ;  "  Don't  you  see  Mr.  Archer's  come  ? — 
away  with  you  and  light  the  parlor  fire,  look  smart  now,  or  I'll 
cure  you!  Supper — you're  always  eat!  eat!  eat!  or,  drink! 
drink! — drunk J  Yes  I  supper;  we've  got  pork]  and  chick- 
ens  " 

"  Oh  !  d — n  your  pork,"  said  I,  "  salt  as  the  ocean  I  sup- 
pose !''  "  And  double  d — n  your  chickens,"  chimed  in  Harry, 
"  old  superannuated  cocks  which  must  be  caught  now,  and  then 
beheaded,  and  then  soused  into  hot  water  to  fetch  off  the  feath- 
ers ;  and  save  you  lazy  devils  the  trouble  of  picking  them.  No, 
no,  Tom  !  get  us  some  fresh  meat  for  to-morrow ;  and  for  to- 
night let  us  have  some  hot  potatoes,  and  some  bread  and  but- 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  19 

ter,  and  we'll  find  beef ;  eh,  Frank?  and  now  look  sharp,  for 
we  must  be  up  in  good  time  to-morrow,  and,  to  be  so,  we  must 
to  bed  betimes.  And  now,  Tom,  are  there  any  cock  ?" 

'l  Cock  !  yes,  I  guess  there  be,  and  quail,  too,  pretty  plenty  ! 
quite  a  smart  chance  of  them,  and  not  a  shot  fired  among  them 
this  fall,  any  how  !" 

"  Well,  which  way  must  we  beat  to-morrow  ?  I  calculate  to 
shoot  three  days  with  you  here-;  and,  on  Wednesday  night, 
when  we  get  in,  to  hitch  up  and  drive  into  Sullivan,  and  see  if 
we  can't  get  a  deer  or  two  !  You'll  go,  Tom  ?" 

"  Well,  well,  we'll  see  any  how ;  but  for  to-morrow,  why,  I 
guess  we  must  beat  the  'Squire's  swamp-hole  first ;  there's  ten 
or  twelve  cock  there,  I  know  ;  I  see  them  there  myself  last  Sun- 
day ;  and  then  acrost  them  buck-wheat  stubbles,  and  the  big 
bog  meadow,  there's  a  drove  of  quail  there  ;  two  or  three  bevys 
got  in  one,  I  reckon  ;  leastwise  I  counted  thirty-three  last  Fri- 
day was  a  week ;  and  through  Seer's  big  swamp,  over  to  the 
great  spring  !'* 

"  How  is  Seer's  swarnp  ?  too  wet,  I  fancy,"  Archer  interposed, 
"  at  least  I  noticed,  from  the  mountain,  that  all  the  leaves  were 
changed  in  it,  and  that  the  maples  were  quite  bare." 

"  Pretty  fair,  pretty  fair,  I  guess,"  replied  stout  Tom,  "  I 
harnt  been  there  myself  though,  but  Jem  was  down  with  the 
hounds  arter  an  old  fox  t'other  day,  and  sure  enough  he  said 
the  cock  kept  flopping  up  quite  thick  afore  him  ;  but  then  the 
critter  will  lie,  Harry  ;  he  will  lie  like  thunder,  you  know  ;  but 
somehow  I  concaits  there  be  cock  there  too ;  and  then,  as  I  was 
saying,  we'll  stop  at  the  great  spring  and  get  a  bite  of  summat, 
and  then  beat  Hell-hole ;  you'll  have  sport  there  for  sartin  ! 
What  dogs  have  you  got  with  you,  Harry  ?" 

"  Your  old  friends,  Shot  and  Chase,  and  a  couple  of  spaniels 
for  thick  covert !" 

"Now,  gentlemen,  your  suppers  are  all  ready." 

"  Come,  Tom,"  cried  Archer  ;  "  you  must  take  a  bite  with 
us — Tim,  bring  us  in  three  bottles  of  champagne,  and  lots  of 
ice,  do  you  hear  ?" 

And  the  next  moment  we  found  ourselves  installed  in  a  snug 
parlor,  decorated  with  a  dozen  sporting  prints,  a  blazing  hickory 
fire  snapping  and  sputtering  and  roaring  in  a  huge  Franklin, 
stove  ;  our  luggage  safely  stowed  in  various  corners,  and  Ar- 
cher's double  gun -case  propped  on  two  chairs  below  the 
window. 


20  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

An  old-fashioned  round  table,  covered  with  clean  white  linen 
of  domestic  manufacture,  displayed  the  noble  round  of  beef 
which  we  had  brought  up  with  us,  flanked  by  a  platter  of  mag- 
nificent potatoes,  pouring  forth  volumes  of  dense  steam  through 
the  cracks  in  their  dusky  skins  ;  a  lordly  dish  of  butter,  that 
might  have  pleased  the  appetite  of  Sisera;  while  eggs  and 
ham,  and  pies  of  apple,  mince-meat,  cranberry,  and  custard,  oc- 
cupied every  vacant  space,  save  where  two  ponderous  pitchers, 
mantling  with  ale  and  cider,  and  two  respectable  square  bot- 
tles, labelled  "Old  Rum"  and  " Brandy— 181 7,"  relieved  the 
prospect.  Before  we  had  sat  down,  Timothy  entered,  bearing 
a  horse  bucket  filled  to  the  brim  with  ice,  from  whence  pro- 
truded the  long  necks  and  split  corks  of  three  champagne 
bottles. 

"  Now,  Tim,"  said  Archer,  "  get  your  own  supper,  when 
you've  finished  with  the  cattle;  feed  the  dogs  well  to-night; 
and  then  to  bed.  And  hark  you,  call  me  at  five  in  the  morn- 
ing; we  shall  want  you  to  carry  the  game-bag  and  the  drinka- 
bles ;  take  care  of  yourself,  Tim,  and  good  night !" 

"  No  need  to  tell  him  that,"  cried  Tom,  "  he  's  something 
like  yourself;  /  tell  you,  Archer,  if  Tim  ever  dies  of  thirst,  it 
must  be  where  there  is  nothing  wet,  but  water !" 

"  Now  hark  to  the  old  scoundrel,  Frank,"  said  Archer,  "  hark 
to  him  pray,  and  if  he  doesn't  out-eat  both  of  us,  and  out-drink 
anything  you  ever  saw,  may  I  miss  my  first  bird  to-morrow — 
that's  all !  Give  me  a  slice  of  beef,  Frank  ;  that  old  Goth 
would  cut  it  an  inch  thick,  if  1  let  him  touch  it ;  out  with  a 
cork,  Tom  !  Here's  to  our  sport  to-morrow  !" 

"  Uh  ;  that  goes  good  !"  replied  Tom,  with  an  oath,  which, 
by  the  apparent  gusto  of  the  speaker,  seemed  to  betoken  that 
the  wine  had  tickled  his  palate — u  that  goes  good  !  that's  dif- 
ferent from  the  darned  red  trash  you  left  up  here  last  time." 

"And  of  which  you  have  left  none,  I'll  be  bound,"  answered 
Archer,  laughing  ;  "  my  best  Latour,  Frank,  which  the  old  infi- 
del calls  trash." 

"  It's  all  below,  every  bottle  of  it,"  answered  Tom  :  "  I 
wouldn't  use  such  rot-gut  stuff,  no,  not  for  vinegar.  'Taint 
half  so  good  as  that  red  sherry  you  had  up  here  oncet ;  that 
was  poor  weak  stuff,  too,  but  it  did  well  to  make  milk  punch 
of;  it  did  well  instead  of  milk." 

"  Now,  Frank,"  said  Archer,  "  you  won't  believe  me,  that  I 
know  ;  but  it's  true,  all  the  same.  A  year  ago,  this  autumn,  I 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  21 

brought  up  five  gallons  of  exceedingly  stout,  rather  fiery,  young, 
brown  sherry — draught  wine,  you  know  ! — and  what  did  Tom 
do  here,  but  mix  it,  half  and  half,  with  brandy,  nutmeg,  and 
sugar,  and  drink  it  for  milk  punch !" 

"  I  did  so,  by  the  eternal,"  replied  Tom,  bolting  a  huge  lump 
of  beef,  in  order  to  enable  himself  to  answer — "  I  did  so,  and 
good  milk  punch  it  made,  too,  but  it  was  too  weak  !  Come, 
Mr.  Forester,  we  harn't  drinked  yet,  and  I'm  kind  o'  gittin 
dry  !" 

And  now  the  mirth  waxed  fast  and  furious — the  champagne 
speedily  was  finished,  the  supper  things  cleared  off,  hot  water 
and  Starke's  Ferintosh  succeeded,  cheroots  were  lighted,  we 
drew  closer  in  about  the  fire,  and,  during  the  circulation  of  two 
tumblers — for  to  this  did  Harry  limit  us,  having  the  prospect 
of  unsteady  hands  and  aching  heads  before  him  for  the  morrow 
— never  did  I  hear  more  genuine  and  real  humor,  than  went 
round  our  merry  trio. 

Tom  Draw,  especially,  though  all  his  jokes  were  not  such  al- 
together as  I  can  venture  to  insert  in  my  chaste  paragraphs, 
and  though  at  times  his  oaths  were  too  extravagantly  rich  to 
brook  repetition,  shone  forth  resplendent.  No  longer  did  I 
wonder  at  what  I  had  before  deemed  Harry  Archer's  strange 
hallucination  ;  Tom  Draw  is  a  decided  genius — rough  as  a  pine 
knot  in  his  native  woods — but  full  of  mirth,  of  shrewdness,  of 
keen  mother  wit,  of  hard  horse  sense,  and  last,  not  least,  of  the 
most  genuine  milk  of  human  kindness.  He  is  a  rough  block ; 
but,  as  Harry  says,  there  is  solid  timber  under  the  uncouth 
bark  enough  to  make  five  hundred  men,  as  men  go  now-a-days 
in  cities  ! 

At  ten  o'clock,  thanks  to  the  excellent  precautions  of  my 
friend  Harry,  we  were  all  snugly  berthed,  before  the  whiskey, 
which  had  well  justified  the  high  praise  I  had  heard  lavished 
on  it,  had  made  any  serious  inroads  on  our  understanding,  but 
not  before  we  had  laid  in  a  quantum  to  ensure  a  good  night's 
rest. 

Bright  and  early  was  I  on  foot  the  next  day,  but  before  I 
had  half  dressed  myself  I  was  assured,  by  the  clatter  of  the 
breakfast  things,  that  Archer  had  again  stolen  a  march  upon 
me  ;  and  the  next  moment  my  bed-room  door,  driven  open  by 
the  thick  boot  of  that  worthy,  gave  me  a  full  view  of  his  per- 
son— arrayed  in  a  stout  fustian  jacket — with  half  a  dozen  pock- 
ets in  full  view,  and  Heaven  only  knows  how  many  more  lying 


22  WARWICK  WOODLANDS. 

perdu  in  the  broad  skirts.  Knee-breeches  of  the  same  mate- 
rial, with  laced  half-boots  and  leather  leggiiis,  set  off  his  stout 
calf  and  well  turned  ankle. 

"  Up !  up !  Frank,"  he  exclaimed,  "  it  is  a  morning  of  ten 
thousand  ;  there  has  been  quite  a  heavy  dew,  and  by  the  time 
we  are  afoot  it  will  be  well  evaporated  ;  and  then  the  scent 
will  lie,  I  promise  you  !  make  haste,  I  tell  you,  breakfast  is 
ready  !" 

Stimulated  by  his  hurrying  voice,  I  soon  completed  my  toilet, 
and  entering  the  parlor  found  Harry  busily  employed  in  stirring 
to  and  fro  a  pound  of  powder  on  one  heated  dinner  plate,  while 
a  second  was  undergoing  the  process  of  preparation  on  the 
hearth-stone  under  a  glowing  pile  of  hickory  ashes. 

At  the  side-table,  covered  with  guns,  dog-whips,  nipple- 
wrenches,  and  the  like,  Tim,  rigged  like  his  master,  in  half 
boots  and  leggins,  but  with  a  short  roundabout  of  velveteen,  in 
place  of  the  full-skirted  jacket,  was  filling  our  shot-pouches  by 
aid  of  a  capacious  funnel,  more  used,  as  its  odor  betokened,  to 
facilitate  the  passage  of  gin  or  Jamaica  spirits  than  of  so  sober 
a  material  as  cold  lead. 

At  the  same  moment  entered  mine  host,  togged  for  the  field 
in  a  huge  pair  of  cow-hide  boots,  reaching  almost  to  the  knee, 
into  the  tops  of  which  were  tucked  the  lower  ends  of  a  pair  of 
trowsers,  containing  yards  enough  of  buffalo-cloth  to  have  eked 
out  the  main-sail  of  a  North  River  sloop  ;  a  waistcoat  and  sin- 
gle-breasted jacket  of  the  same  material,  with  a  fur  cap,  com- 
pleted his  attire  ;  but  in  his  hand  he  bore  a  large  decanter  filled 
with  a  pale  yellowish  liquor,  embalming  a  dense  mass  of  fine 
and  worm-like  threads,  not  very  different  in  appearance  from 
the  best  vermicelli. 

"  Come,  boys,  come — here's  your  bitters,"  he  exclaimed  ; 
and,  as  if  to  set  the  example,  filled  a  big  tumbler  to  the  brim, 
gulped  it  down  as  if  it  had  been  water,  smacked  his  lips,  and 
incontinently  tendered  it  to  Archer,  who,  to  my  great  amaze- 
ment, filled  himself  likewise  a  more  moderate  draught,  and 
quaffed  it  without  hesitation. 

"  That's  good,  Tom,"  he  said,  pausing  after  the  first  sip  ; 
"  that's  the  best  I  ever  tasted  here  ;  how  old's  that  ?" 

"  Five  years  !"  Tom  replied  :  "  five  years  last  fall !  Daddy 
Tom  made  it  out  of  my  own  best  apples — take  a  horn,  Mr. 
Forester,"  he  added,  turning  to  me — "  it's  first  best  cider  sper- 
rits — better  a  darned  sight  than  that  Scotch  stuff  you  make 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  23 

such  an  etarnal  fuss  about,  toting  it  up  here  every  time,  as  if 
we'd  nothing  fit  to  drink  in  the  country  !" 

And  to  my  sorrow  I  did  taste  it — old  apple  whiskey,  with 
Lord  knows  how  much  snake-root  soaked  in  it  for  five  years  ! 
They  may  talk  about  gall  being  bitter ;  but,  by  all  that's  won- 
derful, there  was  enough  of  the  amari  aliquid  in  this  fonte,  to 
me  by  no  means  of  leporum,  to  have  given  an  extra  touch  of 
bitterness  to  all  the  gall  beneath  the  canopy ;  and  with  my 
mouth  puckered  up,  till  it  was  like  anything  on  earth  but  a 
mouth,  I  set  the  glass  down  on  the  table  ;  and  for  the  next  five 
minutes  could  do  nothing  but  shake  my  head  to  and  fro  like  a 
Chinese  mandarin,  amidst  the  loud  and  prolonged  roars  of 
laughter  that  burst  like  thunder  claps  from  the  huge  jaws  of 
Thomas  Draw,  and  the  subdued  and  half  respectful  cachinna- 
tions  of  Tim  Matlock. 

By  the  time  I  had  got  a  little  better,  the  black  tea  was  ready, 
and  with  thick  cream,  hot  buckwheat  cakes,  beautiful  honey, 
and — as  a  stand  by — the  still  venerable  round,  we  made  out  a 
very  tolerable  meal. 

This  done,  with  due  deliberation  Archer  supplied  his  several 
pockets  with  their  accustomed  load — the  clean-punched  wads  in 
this — in  that  the  Westley  Richards'  caps — here  a  pound  horn 
of  powder — there  a  shot-pouch  on  Syke's  lever  principle,  with 
double  mouth-piece — in  another,  screw-driver,  nipple-wrench, 
and  the  spare  cones  ;  and,  to  make  up  the  tale,  dog-whip,  dram- 
bottle,  and  silk  handkerchief  in  the  sixth  and  last. 

"  Nothing  like  method  in  this  world,"  said  Harry,  clapping 
his  low-crowned  broad-brimmed  mohair  cap  upon  his  head  ; 
"  take  my  word  for  it.  Now,  Tim,  what  have  you  got  in  the 
bag  3" 

"  A  bottle  of  champagne,  sur,"  answered  Tim,  who  was  now 
employed  slinging  a  huge  fustian  game-bag,  with  a  net-work 
front,  over  his  right  shoulder,  to  counterbalance  two  full  shot- 
belts  which  were  already  thrown  across  the  other — <l  a  bottle  of 
champagne,  sur — a  cold  roast  chicken — t'  Cheshire  cheese — and 
t'  pilot  biscuits.  Is  your  dram-bottle  filled  wi'  t'  whiskey,  please 
sur  3" 

"  Aye,  aye,  Tim.  Now  let  loose  the  dogs — carry  a  pair  of 
couples  and  a  leash  along  with  you  ;  and  mind  you,  gentlemen, 
Tim  carries  shot  for  all  hands  ;  and  luncheon — but  each  one 
finds  his  own  powder,  caps,  &c. ;  and  any  one  who  wants  a 
dram,  carries  his  own — the  devil  a-one  of  you  gets  a  sup  out  of 


24  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

my  bottle,  or  a  charge  out  of  my  flask !  That's  right,  old 
Trojan,  isn't  it  ?"  with  a  good  slap  on  Tom's  broad  shoulder. 

"  Shot !  Shot — why  Shot !  don't  you  know  me,  old  dog  ?" 
cried  Tom,  as  the  two  setters  bounded  into  the  room,  joyful  at 
their  release — "  good  dog !  good  Chase  !"  feeding  them  with 
great  lumps  of  beef. 

"  Avast !  there  Tom — have  done  with  that,"  cried  Harry  ; 
"you'll  have  the  dogs  so  full  that  they  can't  run." 

"  Why,  how'd  you  like  to  hunt  all  day  without  your  break- 
fast—hey ?" 

"  Here,  lads !  here,  lads !  wh-e-ew  !"  and  followed  by  his 
setters,  with  his  gun  under  his  arm,  away  went  Harry ;  and 
catching  up  our  pieces  likewise,  we  followed,  nothing  loth,  Tim 
bringing  up  the  rear  with  the  two  spaniels  fretting  in  their 
couples,  and  a  huge  black  thorn  cudgel,  which  he  had  brought, 
as  he  informed  me,  "  all  t'  way  from  bonny  Cawoods." 

It  was  as  beautiful  a  morning  as  ever  lighted  sportsmen  to 
their  labors.  The  dew,  exhaled  already  from  the  long  grass, 
still  glittered  here  and  there  upon  the  shrubs  and  trees,  though 
a  soft  fresh  south-western  breeze  was  shaking  it  thence  mo- 
mently in  bright  and  rustling  showers  ;  the  sun,  but  newly 
risen,  and  as  yet  partially  enveloped  in  the  thin  gauze-like  mists 
so  frequent  at  that  season,  was  casting  shadows,  seemingly  end- 
less, from  every  object  that  intercepted  his  low  rays,  and 
chequering  the  whole  landscape  with  that  play  of  light  and 
shade,  which  is  the  loveliest  accessory  to  a  lovely  scene ;  and 
lovely  was  the  scene,  indeed,  as  e'er  was  looked  upon  by  painter's 
or  by  poet's  eye — how  then  should  humble  prose  do  justice 
to  it? 

Seated  upon  the  first  slope  of  a  gentle  hill,  midway  of  the 
great  valley  heretofore  described,  the  village  looked  due  south, 
toward  the  chains  of  mountains,  which  we  had  crossed  on  the 
preceding  evening,  and  which  in  that  direction  bounded  the 
landscape.  These  ridges,  cultivated  half-way  up  their  swelling 
sides,  which  lay  mapped  out  before  our  eyes  in  all  the  various 
beauty  of  orchards,  yellow  stubbles,  and  rich  pastures  dotted 
with  sleek  and  comely  cattle,  were  rendered  yet  more  lovely 
and  romantic,  by  here  and  there  a  woody  gorge,  or  rocky  chasm, 
channelling  their  smooth  flanks,  and  carrying  down  their  tribu- 
tary rills,  to  swell  the  main  stream  at  their  base.  Toward 
these  we  took  our  way  by  the  same  road  which  we  had  followed 
in  an  opposite  direction  on  the  previous  night — but  for  a  short 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  25 

space  only — for  Laving  crossed  the  stream,  by  the  same  bridge 
which  we  had  passed  on  entering  the  village,  Tom  Draw  pulled 
down  a  set  of  bars  to  the  left,  and  strode  out  manfully  into  the 
stubble. 

"  Hold  up,  good  lads  ! — whe-ew — whewt !"  and  away  went 
the  setters  through  the  moist  stubble,  heads  up  and  sterns  down, 
like  fox-hounds  on  a  breast-high  scent,  yet  under  the  most  per- 
fect discipline  ;  for  at  the  very  first  note  of  Harry's  whistle, 
even  when  racing  at  the  top  of  their  pace,  they  would  turn 
simultaneously,  alter  their  course,  cross  each  other  at  right  an- 
gles, and  quarter  the  whole  field,  leaving  no  foot  of  ground  un- 
beaten. 

No  game,  however,  in  this  instance,  rewarded  their  exertions ; 
and  on  we  went  across  a  meadow,  and  two  other  stubbles,  with 
the  like  result.  But  now  we  crossed  a  gentle  hill,  and,  at  its 
base,  came  on  a  level  tract,  containing  at  the  most  ten  acres  of 
marsh  land,  overgrown  with  high  coarse  grass  and  flags.  Be- 
yond this,  on  the  right,  was  a  steep  rocky  hillock,  covered  with 
tall  and  thrifty  timber  of  some  thirty  years*  growth,  but  wholly 
free  from  underwood.  Along  the  left-hand  fence  ran  a  thick 
belt  of  underwood,  sumach  and  birch,  with  a  few  young  oak 
trees  interspersed ;  but  in  the  middle  of  the  swampy  level,  cov- 
ering at  most  some  five  or  six  acres,  was  a  dense  circular  thicket 
composed  of  every  sort  of  thorny  bush  and  shrub,  matted  with 
cat-briers  and  wild  vines,  and  overshadowed  by  a  clump  of  tall 
and  leafy  ashes,  which  had  not  as  yet  lost  one  atom  of  their  fo- 
liage, although  the  underwood  beneath  them  was  quite  sere  and 
leafless. 

"  Now  then,"  cried  Harry,  "  this  is  the  *  Squire's  swamp-hole !' 
Now  for  a  dozen  cock  !  hey,  Tom  ?  Here,  couple  up  the  setters, 
Tim  ;  and  let  the  spaniels  loose.  Now  Flash  !  now  Dan  !  down 
charge,  you  little  villains !"  and  the  well  broke  brutes  dropped 
on  the  instant.  "  How  must  we  beat  this  cursed  hole  3" 

"  You  must  go  through  the  very  thick  of  it,  congarn  you  !" 
exclaimed  Tom  ;  "  at  your  old  work  already,  hey  ?  trying  to 
shirk  at  first !" 

"  Don't  swear  so !  you  old  reprobate  !  I  know  my  place,  de- 
pend on  it,"  cried  Archer ;  "  but  what  to  do  with  the  rest  of 
you  ! — there's  the  rub !" 

"  Not  a  bit  of  it,"  cried  Tom — "  here,  Yorkshire — Ducklegs 
— here,  what's  your  name — get  away  you  with  those  big  dogs 
— atwixt  the  swamp  hole,  and  the  brush  there  by  the  fence,  and 


26  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

look  out  that  you  mark  every  bird  to  an  inch  !  You,  Mr.  Fores- 
ter, go  in  there,  under  that  butter-nut;  you'll  find  a  blind  track 
there,  right  through  the  brush — keep  that  'twixt  Tim  and  Mr. 
Archer ;  and  keep  your  eyes  skinned,  do  !  there'll  be  a  cock  up 
before  you're  ten  yards  in.  Archer,  you'll  go  right  through, 
and  I'll » 

"You'll  keep  well  forward  on  the  right — and  mind  that  no 
bird  crosses  to  the  hill ;  we  never  get  them,  if  they  once  get 
over.  All  right !  In  with  you  now  !  Steady,  Flash  1  steady  I 
hie  up,  Dan  !"  and  in  a  moment  Harry  was  out  of  sight  among 
the  brush-wood,  though  his  progress  might  be  traced  by  the 
continual  crackling  of  the  thick  underwood. 

Scarce  had  I  passed  the  butter-nut,  when,  even  as  Tom  had 
said,  up  flapped  a  woodcock  scarcely  ten  yards  before  me,  in  the 
open  path,  and  rising  heavily  to  clear  the  branches  of  a  tall  thorn 
bush,  showed  me  his  full  black  eye,  and  tawny  breast,  as  fair  a 
shot  as  could  be  fancied. 

"  Mark  1"  holloaed  Harry  to  my  right,  his  quick  ear  having 
caught  the  flap  of  the  bird's  wing,  as  he  rose.  "  Mark  cock — 
Frank !" 

Well — steadily  enough,  as  I  thought,  I  pitched  my  gun  up  I 
covered  my  bird  fairly  !  pulled  ! — the  trigger  gave  not  to  my 
finger.  I  tried  the  other.  Devil's  in  it,  I  had  forgot  to  cock 
my  gun  !  and  ere  I  could  retrieve  my  error,  the  bird  had  topped 
the  bush,  and  dodged  out  of  sight,  and  off — "  Mark  1  mark  ! — 
Tim !"  I  shouted. 

"  Ey  !  ey  !  sur — Ay  see's  um  !" 

"  Why,  how's  that,  Frank  ?"  cried  Harry.  "  Couldn't  you 
get  a  shot  ?" 

"  Forgot  to  cock  my  gun  !''  I  cried  ;  but  at  the  self-same  mo- 
ment the  quick  sharp  yelping  of  the  spaniels  came  on  my  ear. 
'•  Steady,  Flash !  steady,  sir  1  Mark  1"  But  close  upon  the 
word  came  the  full  round  report  of  Harry's  gun.  "  Mark  I 
again !"  shouted  Harry,  and  again  his  own  piece  sent  its  loud 
ringing  voice  abroad.  "  Mark  !  now  a  third  !  mark,  Frank  !" 

And  as  he  spoke  I  caught  the  quick  rush  of  his  wing,  and  saw 
him  dart  across  a  space,  a  few  yards  to  my  right.  I  felt  my  hand 
shake :  I  had  not  pulled  a  trigger  in  ten  months,  but  in  a  second's 
space  I  rallied.  There  was  an  opening  just  before  me  between  a 
stumpy  thick  thorn-bush  which  had  saved  the  last  bird,  and  a 
dwarf  cedar;  it  was  not  two  yards  over ;  he  glanced  across  it; 


ARWICK    WOODLANDS.  27 

he  was  gone,  just  as  my  barrel  sent  its  charge  into  the  splinter- 
ed branches. 

'*  Beautiful !"  shouted  Harry,  who,  looking  through  a  cross 
glade,  saw  the  bird  fall,  which  I  could  not.  "  Beautiful  shot, 
Frank  !  Do  all  your  work  like  that,  and  we'll  get  twenty  couple 
before  night !"" 

"Have  1  killed  him  !"  answered  I,  half  doubting  if  he  were 
not  quizzing  me. 

"  Killed  him  ?  of  course  you  have  ;  doubled  him  up  complete- 
ly !  But  look  sharp  !  there  are  more  birds  before  me !  I  can 
hardly  keep  the  dogs  down,  now  !  There  !  there  goes  one — 
clean  out  of  shot  of  me,  though  !  Mark  !  mark,  Tom  !  Gad,  how 
the  fat  dog's  running !"  he  continued.  "He  sees  him!  Ten 
to  one  he  gets  him  !  There  he  goes — bang!  Along  shot,  and 
killed  clean  !" 

44  Ready  !"  cried  I.     "  I'm  ready,  Archer  1" 

"  Bag  your  bird,  then.  He  lies  under  that  dock  leaf,  at  the 
foot  of  yon  red  maple  !  That's  it ;  you've  got  him.  Steady 
now,  till  Tom  gets  loaded  !" 

"  What  did  you  do  ?''  asked  I.     "  You  fired  twice,  I  think  !" 

"  Killed  two  !"  he  answered.  "  Ready,  now  !"  and  on  he  went, 
smashing  away  the  boughs  before  him,  while  ever  and  anon  I 
heard  his  cheery  voice,  calling  or  whistling  to  his  dogs,  or  rous- 
ing up  the  tenants  of  some  thickets  into  which  even  he  could 
not  force  his  way  ;  and  I,  creeping,  as  best  I  might,  among  the 
tangled  brush,  now  plunging  half  thigh  deep  in  holes  full  of 
tenacious  mire,  now  blundering  over  the  moss-covered  stubs, 
pressed  forward,  fancying  every  instant  that  the  rustling  of  the 
briers  against  my  jacket  was  the  flip-flap  of  a  rising  woodcock. 
Suddenly,  after  bursting  through  a  mass  of  thorns  and  wild- 
vine,  which  was  in  truth  almost  impassable,  I  came  upon  a  little 
grassy  spot  quite  clear  of  trees,  and  covered  with  the  tenderest 
verdure,  through  which  a  narrow  rill  stole  silently ;  and  as  I  set 
my  first  foot  on  it,  up  jumped,  with  his  beautiful  variegated  back 
all  reddened  by  the  sunbeams,  a  fine  and  full-fed  woodcock, 
with  the  peculiar  twitter  which  he  utters  when  surprised.  He 
had  not  gone  ten  yards,  however,  before  my  gun  was  at  my 
shoulder  and  the  trigger  drawn  ;  before  I  heard  the  crack  I  saw 
him  cringe ;  and,  as  the  white  smoke  drifted  off  to  leeward,  he 
fell  heavily,  completely  riddled  by  the  shot,  into  the  brake  be- 
fore me  ;  while  at  the  same  moment,  whir-r-r !  up  sprung  a 
bevy  of  twenty  quail,  at  least,  startling  me  for  the  moment  by 


"i5* 

28  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

the  thick  whirring  of  their  wings,  and  skirring  over  the  under- 
wood right  toward  Archer.  "  Mark,  quail !"  1  shouted,  and,  re- 
covering instantly  my  nerves,  fired  my  one  remaining  barrel  af- 
ter the  last  bird  !  It  was  a  long  shot,  yet  I  struck  him  fairly, 
and  he  rose  instantly  right  upward,  towering  high  !  high  !  into 
the  clear  blue  sky,  and  soaring  still,  till  his  life  left  him  in  the 
air,  and  he  fell  like  a  stone,  plump  downward  ! 

"  Mark  him  !  Tim  !" 

"  Ey  !  ey  !  sur.     He's  a  de-ad  un,  that's  a  sure  thing  !" 

At  my  shot  all  the  bevy  rose  a  little,  yet  altered  not  their 
course  the  least,  wheeling  across  the  thicket  directly  round  the 
front  of  Archer,  whose  whereabout  I  knew,  though  I  could 
neither  see  nor  hear  him.  So  high  did  they  fly  that  I  could 
observe  them  clearly,  every  bird  well  defined  against  the  sunny 
heavens.  I  watched  them  eagerly.  Suddenly  one  turned  over; 
a  cloud  of  feathers  streamed  off  down  the  wind  ;  and  then,  be- 
fore the  sound  of  the  first  shot  had  reached  my  ears,  a  second 
pitched  a  few  yards  upward,  and,  after  a  heavy  flutter,  followed 
its  hapless  comrade. 

Turned  by  the  fall  of  the  two  leading  birds,  the  bevy  again 
wheeled,  still  rising  higher,  and  now  flying  very  fast ;  so  that,  as 
I  saw  by  the  direction  which  they  took,  they  would  probably 
give  Draw  a  chance  of  getting  in  both  barrels.  And  so  indeed 
it  was  ;  for,  as  before,  long  ere  I  caught  the  booming  echoes  of 
his  heavy  gun,  I  saw  two  birds  keeled  over,  and,  almost  at  the 
same  instant,  the  cheery  shout  of  Tim  announced  to  me  that  Le 
had  bagged  my  towered  bird  !  After  a  little  pause,  again  we 
started,  and,  hailing  one  another  now  and  then,  gradually  forced 
our  way  through  brake  and  brier  toward  the  outward  verge  of 
the  dense  covert.  Before  we  met  again,  however,  I  had  the 
luck  to  pick  up  a  third  woodcock,  and  as  I  heard  another  double 
shot  from  Archer,  and  two  single  bangs  from  Draw,  I  judged 
that  my  companions  had  not  been  less  successful  than  myself. 
At  last,  emerging  from  the  thicket,  we  all  converged,  as  to  a 
common  point,  toward  Tim  ;  who,  with  his  game-bag  on  the 
ground,  with  its  capacious  mouth  wide  open  to  receive  our 
game,  sat  on  a  stump  with  the  two  setters  at  a  charge  beside 
him. 

"  What  do  we  score  ?"  cried  I,  as  we  drew  near ;  "  what  do 
we  score  ?" 

"  I  have  four  woodcocks,  and  a  brace  of  quail,"  said  Harry. 

"  And  I,  two  cock  and  a  brace,"  cried  Tom,  "  and  missed  an- 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  29 

other  cock  ;  but  he's  down  in  the  meadow  here,  behind  that 
'ere  stump  alder !" 

"  And  I,  three  woodcock  and  one  quail !"  I  chimed  in,  naught 
abashed. 

u  And  Ay'se  marked  doon  three  woodcock — two  more  be- 
side yon  big  un,  that  measter  Draa  made  siccan  a  bungle  of — 
and  all  t'  quail — every  feather  on  um — doon  i'  t'  bog  meadow 
yonner — ooh  !  but  we'se  mak  grand  sport  o't!"  interposed  Tim, 
now  busily  employed  stringing  bird  after  bird  up  by  the  head, 
with  loops  and  buttons  in  the  game-bag  ! 

u  Well  done  then,  all  !"  said  Harry.  "  Nine  timber-doodles 
and  five  quail,  and  only  one  shot  missed  !  That's  not  bad  shoot- 
ing, considering  what  a  hole  it  is  to  shoot  in.  Gentlemen, 
here's  your  health,"  and  filling  himself  out  a  fair  sized  wine- 
glass-full of  Ferintosh,  into  the  silver  cup  of  his  dram-bottle,  he 
tossfd  it  off;  and  then  poured  out  a  similar  libation  for  Tim 
Matlock.  Tom  and  myself,  nothing  loth,  obeyed  the  hint,  and 
sipped  our  modicums  of  distilled  waters  out  of  our  private 
flasks. 

"  Now,  then,"  cried  Archer,  "  let  us  pick  up  these  scattering 
birds.  Tom  Draw,  you  can  get  yours  without  a  dog !  And 
now,  Tim,  where  are  yours?" 

tk  T'  first  lies  oop  yonner  in  yon  boonch  of  brachens,  ahint  t' 
big  scarlet  maple  ;  and  t'  other — " 

u  Well !  Til  go  to  the  first.  You  take  Mr.  Forester  to  the 
other,  and  when  we  have  bagged  all  three,  we'll  meet  at  the 
bog  meadow  fence,  and  then  hie  at  the  bevy  !" 

This  job  was  soon  done,  for  Draw  and  Harry  bagged  their 
birds  cleverly  at  the  first  rise  ;  and  although  mine  got  off  at  first 
without  a  shot,  by  dodging  round  a  birch  tree  straight  in  Tim's 
face,  and  flew  back  slap  toward  the  thicket,  yet  he  pitched  in  its 
outer  skirt,  and  as  he  jumped  up  wild  I  cut  him  down  with  a 
broken  pinion  and  a  shot  through  his  bill  at  fifty  yards,  and 
Chase  retrieved  him  well. 

44  Cleverly  stopped,  indeed !"  Frank  halloaed ;  "  and  by  no 
means  an  easy  shot !  and  so  our  work's  clean  done  for  this 
place,  at  the  least !" 

*'  The  boy  can  shoot  some,"*  observed  Tom  Draw,  who  loved 
to  bother  Timothy;  "  the  boy  can  shoot  some,  though  he  doos 
come  from  Yorkshire !" 

"  Gad  !  and  Ay  wush  Ay'd  no  but  gotten  thee  i'  Yorkshire, 
measter  Draa !"  responded  Tim. 


30  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

"  Why !  what  if  you  had  got  me  there  ?" 

"What?  Whoy,  Ay'd  clap  thee  iv  a  cage,  and  hug  thee 
round  t'  feasts  and  fairs  loike ;  and  shew  thee  to  t'  folks  at  so 
mooch  a  head.  Ay'se  sure  Ay'd  mak  a  fortune  o'  t !'' 

"  He  has  you  there,  Tom  !  Ha  !  ha !  ha  !''  laughed  Archer. 
"Tim  7s  down  upon  you  there,  by  George!  Now,  Frank,  do 
fancy  Tom  Draw  in  a  cage  at  Borough-bridge  or  Catterick  fair! 
Lord!  how  the  folks  would  pay  to  look  at  him!  Fancy  the 
sign  board  too!  The  Great  American  Man-Mammoth!  Ha! 
ha!  ha!  But  come,  we  must  not  stay  here  talking  nonsense, 
or  we  shall  do  no  good.  Show  me,  Tim,  where  are  the  quail !" 

"  Doon  i'  t'  bog  meadow  yonner !  joost  i'  t'  slack,*  see  thee, 
there !"  pointing  with  the  stout  black-thorn  ;  "  amang  yon  bits 
o'  bushes !" 

"  Very  well — that  's  it ;  now  let  go  the  setters  ;  take  Flash 
and  Dan  along  with  you,  and  cut  across  the  country  as  straight 
as  you  can  go  to  the  spring  head,  where  we  lunched  last  year ; 
that  day,  you  know,  Tom,  when  McTavish  frightened  the  bull 
out  of  the  meadow,  under  the  pin-oak  tree.  Well  !  put  the 
champagne  into  the  spring  to  cool,  and  rest  yourself  there  till 
we  come  *,  we  shan't  be  long  behind  you." 

Away  went  Tim,  stopping  from  time  to  time  to  mark  our 
progress,  and  over  the  fence  into  the  bog  meadow  we  proceeded  ; 
a  rascally  piece  of  broken  tussocky  ground,  with  black  mud 
knee-deep  between  the  hags,  all  covered  with  long  grass.  The 
third  step  I  took,  over  I  went  upon  my  nose,  but  luckily  avoided 
shoving  my  gun-barrels  into  the  filthy  mire. 

"  Steady,  Frank,  steady !  I'm  ashamed  of  you !"  said  Harry  ; 
"so  hot  and  so  impetuous ;  and  your  gun  too  at  the  full  cock  ; 
that 's  the  reason,  man,  why  you  missed  firing  at  your  first  bird, 
this  morning.  I  never  cock  either  barrel  till  I  see  my  bird ; 
and,  if  a  bevy  rises,  only  one  at  a  time.  The  birds  will  lie  like 
stones  here  ;  and  we  cannot  walk  too  slow.  Steady,  Shot,  have 
a  care,  sir !" 

Never,  in  all  my  life,  did  I  see  any  thing  more  perfect  than 
the  style  in  which  the  setters  drew  those  bogs.  There  was  no 
more  of  racing,  no  more  of  impetuous  dash  ;  it  seemed  as  if 
they  knew  the  birds  were  close  before  them.  At  a  slow  trot, 
their  sterns  whipping  their  flanks  at  every  step,  they  threaded 

*  Slack — Yorkshire.    Anglice,  Moist  hollow. 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  31 


the  high  tussocks.  See !  the  red  dog  straightens  his  neck,  and 
snuffs  the  air. 

"  Look  to  !  look  to,  Frank  !  they  are  close  before  old  Chase !" 

Now  he  draws  on  again,  crouching  close  to  the  earth.  "Toho! 
Shot !"  Now  he  stands  !  no  !  no  !  not  yet — at  least  he  is  not 
certain  !  He  turns  his  head  to  catch  his  master's  eye !  Now 
his  stern  moves  a  little;  he  draws  on  again. 

There  !  he  is  sure  now  !  what  a  picture— his  black  full  eye 
intently  glaring,  though  he  cannot  see  any  thing  in  that  thick 
mass  of  herbage ;  his  nostril  wide  expanded,  his  lips  slavering 
from  intense  excitement;  his  whole  form  motionless,  and  sharply 
drawn,  and  rigid,  even  to  the  straight  stern  and  lifted  foot,  as  a 
block  wrought  to  mimic  life  by  some  skilful  sculptor's  chisel ; 
and,  scarce  ten  yards  behind,  his  liver-colored  comrade  backs 
him — as  firm,  as  stationary,  as  immovable,  but  in  his  attitude, 
how  different !  Chase  feels  the  hot  scent  steaming  up  under  his 
very  nostril ;  feels  it  in  every  nerve,  and  quivers  with  anxiety 
to  dash  on  his  prey,  even  while  perfectly  restrained  and  steady. 
Shot,  on  the  contrary,  though  a  few  minutes  since  he  too  was 
drawing,  knows  nothing  of  himself,  perceives  no  indication  of 
the  game's  near  presence,  although  improved  by  discipline,  his 
instinct  tells  him  that  his  mate  has  found  them.  Hence  the 
same  rigid  form,  stiff'  tail,  and  constrained  attitude,  but  in  his 
face — for  dogs  have  faces — there  is  none  of  that  tense  energy, 
that  evident  anxiety  ;  there  is  no  frown  upon  his  brow,  no  glare 
in  his  mild  open  eye,  no  slaver  on  his  lip  ! 

44  Come  up,  Tom  ;  come  up,  Frank,  they  are  all  here ;  we 
must  get  in  six  barrels  ;  they  will  not  move  :  come  up,  I  say  !" 

And  on  we  came,  deliberately  prompt,  and  ready.  Now  we 
were  all  in  line :  Harry  the  centre  man,  I  on  the  right,  and  Tom 
on  the  left  hand.  The  attitude  of  Archer  was  superb ;  his  legs, 
set  a  little  way  apart,  as  firm  as  if  they  had  been  rooted  in  the 
soil ;  his  form  drawn  back  a  little,  and  his  head  erect,  with  his 
eye  fixed  upon  the  dogs  ;  his  gun  held  in  both  hands,  across 
his  person,  the  muzzle  slightly  elevated,  his  left  grasping  the 
trigger  guard  ;  the  thumb  of  the  right  resting  upon  the  hammer, 
and  the  fore-finger  on  the  trigger  of  the  left  hand  barrel ;  but, 
as  he  had  said,  neither  cocked.  "  Fall  back,  Tom,  if  you  please, 
five  yards  or  so,"  he  said,  as  coolly  as  if  he  were  unconcerned, 
"  and  you  come  forward,  Frank,  as  many ;  I  want  to  drive  them 
to  the  left,  into  those  low  red  bushes  ;  that  will  do :  now  then, 
I  '11  flush  them ;  never  mind  me,  boys,  I  '11  reserve  my  fire." 


82  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

And,  as  he  spoke,  he  moved  a  yard  or  two  in  front  of  us,  and 
under  his  very  feet,  positively  startling  me  by  their  noisy  flutter, 
up  sprang  the  gallant  bevy :  fifteen  or  sixteen  well  grown  birds, 
crowding  and  jostling  one  against  the  other.  Tom  Draw's  gun, 
as  I  well  believe,  was  at  his  shoulder  when  they  rose ;  at  least 
his  first  shot  was  discharged  before  they  had  flown  half  a  rood, 
and  of  course  harmlessly:  the  charge  must  have  been  driven 
through  them  like  a  single  ball ;  his  second  barrel  instant'y 
succeeded,  and  down  came  two  birds,  caught  in  the  act  of 
crossing.  I  am  myself  a  quick  shot,  too  quick  if  anything,  yet 
my  first  barrel  was  exploded  a  moment  after  Tom  Draw's 
second ;  the  other  followed,  and  I  had  the  satisfaction  of 
bringing  both  my  birds  down  handsomely ;  then  up  went 
Harry's  piece — the  bevy  being  now  twenty  or  twenty-five  yards 
distant — cocking  it  as  it  rose,  he  pulled  the  trigger  almost  before 
it  touched  his  shoulder,  so  rapid  was  the  movement ;  and, 
though  he  lowered  the  stock  a  little  to  cock  the  second  barrel, 
a  moment  scarcely  passed  between  the  two  reports,  and  almost 
on  the  instant  two  quail  were  fluttering  out  their  lives  among 
the  bog  grass. 

Dropping  his  butt,  without  a  word,  or  even  a  glance  to  the 
dogs,  he  quietly  went  on  to  load  ;  nor  indeed  was  it  needed :  at 
the  first  shot  they  dropped  into  the  grass,  and  there  they  lay 
as  motionless  as  if  they  had  been  dead,  with  their  heads 
crouched  between  their  paws  ;  nor  did  they  stir  thence  till  the 
tick  of  the  gun-locks  announced  that  we  again  were  ready. 
Then  lifting  up  their  heads,  and  rising  on  their  fore-feet,  they 
sat  half  erect,  eagerly  waiting  for  the  signal. 

"  Hold  up,  good  lads  !"  and  on  they  drew,  and  in  an  instant 
pointed  on  two  several  birds.  "  Fetch  !"  and  each  brought  his 
burthen  to  our  feet ;  six  birds  were  bagged  at  that  rise,  and  thus 
before  eleven  o'clock  we  had  picked  up  a  dozen  cock,  and  within 
one  of  the  same  number  of  fine  quail,  with  only  two  shots 
missed.  The  poor  remainder  of  the  bevy  had  dropped,  singly, 
and  scattered,  in  the  red  bushes,  whither  we  instantly  pursued 
them,  and  where  we  got  six  more,  making  a  total  of  seventeen 
birds  bagged  out  of  a  bevy,  twenty  strong  at  first. 

One  towered  bird  of  Harry's,  certainly  killed  dead,  we  could 
not  with  all  our  efforts  bring  to  bag ;  one  bird  Tom  Draw  missed 
clean,  and  the  remaining  one  we  could  not  find  again ;  another 
dram  of  whiskey,  and  into  Seer's  great  swamp  we  started :  a 
large  piece  of  woodland,  with  every  kind  of  lying.  At  one  end 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  33 

it  was  open,  with  soft  black  loamy  soil,  covered  with  docks  and 
colts-foot  leaves  under  the  shade  of  large  but  leafless  willows, 
and  here  we  picked  up  a  good  many  scattered  woodcock ; 
afterward  we  got  into  the  heavy  thicket  with  much  tangled 
grass,  wherein  we  flushed  a  bevy,  but  they  all  took  to  tree,  and 
we  made  very  little  of  them ;  and  here  Tom  Draw  began  to 
blow  and  labor ;  the  covert  was  too  thick,  the  bottom  too  deep 
and  unsteady  for  him. 

Archer  perceiving  this,  sent  him  at  once  to  the  outside ;  and 
three  times,  as  we  went  along,  ourselves  moving  nothing,  we 
heard  the  round  reports  of  his  large  calibre.  "A  bird  at  every 
shot,  I  'd  stake  my  life,"  said  Harry,  "  he  never  misses  cross 
shots  in  the  open ;"  at  the  same  instant,  a  tremendous  rush 
of  wings  burst  from  the  heaviest  thicket :  "  Mark  !  partridge ! 
partridge !"  and  as  I  caught  a  glimpse  of  a  dozen  large  birds 
fluttering  up,  one  close  upon  the  other,  and  darting  away  as 
straight  and  nearly  as  fast  as  bullets,  through  the  dense  branches 
of  a  cedar  brake,  I  saw  the  flashes  of  both  Harry's  barrels, 
almost  simultaneously  discharged,  and  at  the  same  time  over 
went  the  objects  of  his  aim  ;  but  ere  I  could  get  up  my  gun 
the  rest  were  out  of  sight.  "  You  must  shoot,  Frank,  like 
lightning,  to  kill  these  beggars  ;  they  are  the  ruffed  grouse, 
though  they  call  them  partridge  here  :  see  !  are  they  not  fine 
fellows  F 

Another  hour's  beating,  in  which  we  still  kept  picking  up, 
from  time  to  time,  some  scattering  birds,  brought  us  to  the 
spring  head,  where  we  found  Tim  with  luncheon  ready,  and 
our  fat  friend  reposing  at  his  side,  with  two  more  grouse,  and  a 
rabbit  which  he  had  bagged  along  the  covert's  edge.  Cool 
was  the  Star  champagne  ;  and  capital  was  the  cold  fowl  and 
Cheshire  cheese ;  and  most  delicious  was  the  repose  that 
followed,  enlivened  with  gay  wit  and  free  good  humor,  soothed 
by  the  fragrance  of  the  exquisite  cheroots,  moistened  by  the  last 
drops  of  the  Ferintosh  qualified  by  the  crystal  waters  of  the 
spring.  After  an  hour's  rest,  we  counted  up  our  spoil ;  four 
ruffed  grouse,  nineteen  woodcocks,  with  ten  brace  and  a  half  of 
quail  beside  the  bunny,  made  up  our  score — done  comfortably 
in  four  hours. 

"Now  we  have  finished  for  to-day  with  quail,"  said  Archer, 

k"  but  we  '11  get  full  ten  couple  more  of  woodcock  ;  come,  let  us 
>e  stirring ;  hang  up  your  game-bag  in  the  tree,  and  tie  the 
otters  to  the  fence ;  I  want  you  in  with  me  to  beat,  Tim  ;  you 
,. 


84  WARWICK   WOODLANDS* 

two  chaps  must  botli  keep  the  outside — you  all  the  time,  Tom  \ 
you,  Frank,  till  you  get  to  that  tall  thunder-shivered  ash  tree ; 
turn  in  there,  and  follow  up  the  margin  of  a  wide  slank  you 
will  see;  but  be  careful)  the  mud  is  very  deep,  and  dangerous 
in  places  ;  now  then,  here  goes  I" 

And  in  he  went,  jumping  a  narrow  streamlet  into  a  point  of 
thicket,  through  which  he  drove  by  main  force*  Scarce  had  he 
got  six  yards  into  the  brake,  before  both  spaniels  quested  ;  and, 
to  my  no  small  wonder,  the  jungle  seemed  alive  with  woodcock  ; 
eight  or  nine,  at  the  least,  flapped  up  at  once,  and  skimmed 
along  the  tongue  of  coppice  toward  the  high  wood,  which  ran 
along  the  valley,  as  I  learned  afterward,  for  full  three  miles  in 
length — while  four  or  five  more  wheeled  off  to  the  sides,  giving 
myself  and  Draw  fair  shots,  by  which  we  did  not  fail  to  profit ; 
but  I  confess  it  was  with  absolute  astonishment  that  I  saw  two  of 
those  turned  over,  which  flew  inward,  killed  by  the  marvellously 
quick  and  unerring  aim  of  Archer,  where  a  less  thorough 
sportsman  would  have  been  quite  unable  to  discharge  a  gun  at 
all,  so  dense  was  the  tangled  jungle.  Throughout  the  whole 
length  of  that  skirt  of  coppice,  a  hundred  and  fifty  yards,  I 
should  suppose  at  the  utmost,  the  birds  kept  rising  as  it  were 
incessantly — thirty-five,  or,  I  think,  nearly  forty,  being  flushed 
in  less  than  twenty  minutes,  although  comparatively  few  were 
killed,  partly  from  the  difficulty  of  the  ground,  and  partly  from 
their  getting  up  by  fours  and  fives  at  once.  Into  the  high 
wood,  however,  at  the  last  we  drove  them ;  and  there,  till 
daylight  failed  us,  we  did  our  work  like  men.  By  the  cold 
light  of  the  full  moon  we  wended  homeward,  rejoicing  in  the 
possession  of  twenty-six  couple  and  a  half  of  cock,  twelve  brace 
of  quail — we  found  another  bevy  on  our  way  home  and  bagged 
three  birds  almost  by  moonlight — five  ruffed  grouse,  and  a 
rabbit.  Before  our  wet  clothes  were  well  changed,  supper  was 
ready,  and  a  good  blow-out  was  followed  by  sound  slumbers 
arid  sweet  dreams,  fairly  earned  by  nine  hours  of  incessant 
walking. 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS,  35 


DAY  THE  THIRD. 

So  thoroughly  was  I  tired  out  by  the  effects  of  the  first  day's 
fagging  I  bad  undergone  in  many  months,  and  so  sound  was 
the  slumber  into  which  I  sank  the  moment  my  head  touched 
the  pillow,  that  it  scarcely  seemed  as  if  five  minutes  had  elapsed 
between  my  falling  into  sweet  forgetfulness,  and  my  starting 
bolt  upright  in  bed,  aroused  by  the  vociferous  shout,  and  pon- 
derous tramping,  equal  to  nothing  less  than  that  of  a  full-grown 
rhinoceros,  with  which  Tom  Draw  rushed,  long  before  the  sun 
was  up,  into  my  chamber. 

"  What's  this,  what's  this  now  ?"  he  exclaimed ;  "  why  the 
plague  arn't  JTOU  up  and  ready  ? — why  here's  the  bitters  mixed, 
and  Archer  in  the  stable  this  half  hour  past,  and  Jem's  here 
with  the  hounds — and  you,  you  lazy  snorting  Injun,  wasting 
the  morning  here  in  bed  !" 

My  only  reply  to  this  most  -characteristic  salutation,  was  to 
hurl  my  pillow  slap  in  his  face,  and — threatening  to  follow  up 
the  missile  with  the  contents  of  the  water  pitcher,  which  stood 
temptingly  within  my  reach,  if  he  did  not  get  out  incontinently 
— to  jump  up  and  array  myself  with  all  due  speed  ;  for,  when 
I  had  collected  my  bewildered  thoughts,  I  well  remembered  that 
we  had  settled  on  a  fox-bunt  before  breakfast,  as  a  preliminary 
to  a  fresh  skirmish  with  the  quail. 

In  a  few  minutes  I  was  on  foot  and  in  the  parlor,  where  I 
found  a  bright  crackling  fire,  a  mighty  pitcher  of  milk  punch, 
and  a  plate  of  biscuit,  a<n  apt  substitute  for  breakfast  before 
starting  ;  while,  however,  I  was  discussing  these,  Archer  arrived, 
dressed  just  as  I  have  described  him  on  the  preceding  day,  with, 
the  addition  of  a  pair  of  heavy  hunting  spurs,  buckled  on  over 
his  half- boots,  and  a  large  iron-hammered  whip  in  his  right 
hand. 

"  That's  right,  Frank,""  he  exclaimed,  after  the  ordinary  salu- 
tations of  the  morning. 

"  Why  that  old  porpoise  told  me  you  would  not  be  ready 
these  two  hours  ;  he's  grumbling  out  yonder  by  the  stable  door, 
like  a  hog  stuck  in  a  farm-yard  gate.  But  come,  we  may  as 
well  be  moving,  for  the  hounds  are  all  uncoupled,  and  the  nags 
saddled — p^ut  on  a  pair  of  straps  to  your  fustian  trowsers  and 
take  these  racing  spurs,  though  Peacock  does  not  want  them— 
-and  now,  hurrah  ]" 


36  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

This  was  soon  done,  and  going  out  upon  the  stoop,  a  scene- 
it  is  true,  widely  different  from  the  kennel  door  at  Melton,  or 
the  covert  side  at  Billesdon  Coplow,  yet  riot  by  any  means  de- 
void of  interest  or  animation — presented  itself  to  my  eyes. 
About  six  couple  of  large  heavy  hounds,  with  deep  and  pendant 
ears,  heavy  well-feathered  sterns,  broad  chests,  and  muscular 
strong  limbs,  were  gathered  round  their  feeder,  the  renowned 
Jem  Lyn  ;  on  whom  it  may  not  be  impertinent  to  waste  a  word 
or  two,  before  proceeding  to  the  mountain,  which,  as  I  learned, 
to  my  no  little  wonder,  was  destined  to  be  our  hunting  ground. 

Picture  to  yourself,  then,  gentle  reader,  a  small  but  actively 
formed  man,  with  a  face  of  most  unusual  and  portentous  ugli- 
ness, an  uncouth  grin  doing  the  part  of  a  smile ;  a  pair  of  eyes 
so  small  that  they  would  have  been  invisible,  but  for  the  ser- 
pent-like vivacity  and  brightness  with  which  they  sparkled  from 
their  deep  sockets,  and  a  profusion  of  long  hair,  coal-black,  but 
lank  and  uncurled  as  an  Indian's,  combed  smoothly  down  with 
a  degree  of  care  entirely  out  of  keeping  with  the  other  details, 
whether  of  dress  or  countenance,  on  either  cheek.  Above  these 
sleek  and  cherished  tresses  he  wore  a  thing  which  might  have 
passed  for  either  cap  or  castor,  at  the  wearer's  pleasure ;  for  it 
was  wholly  destitute  of  brim  except  for  a  space  some  three  or 
four  inches  wide  over  the  eyebrows  ;  and  the  crown  had  been  so 
pertinaciously  and  completely  beaten  in,  that  the  sides  sloped 
inward  at  the  top,  as  if  to  personate  a  bishop's  mitre ;  a  fishing 
line  was  wound  about  this  graceful  and,  if  its  appearance  belied 
it  not  most  foully,  odoriferous  head-dress ;  and  into  the  fishing 
line  was  stuck  the  bowl  and  some  two  inches  of  the  shank  of  a 
well-sooted  pipe.  An  old  red  handkerchief  was  twisted  rope- 
wise  about  his  lean  and  scraggy  neck,  but  it  by  no  means  sufficed 
to  hide  the  scar  of  what  had  evidently  been  a  most  appalling 
gash,  extending  right  across  his  throat,  almost  from  ear  to  ear, 
the  great  cicatrix  clearly  visible  like  a  white  line  through  the 
thick  stubble  of  some  ten  days'  standing  that  graced  his  chin 
and  neck. 

An  old  green  coat,  the  skirts  of  which  had  long  since  been 
docked  by  the  encroachment  of  thorn-bushes  and  cat-briers, 
with  the  mouth-piece  of  a  powder-horn  peeping  from  its  breast 
pocket,  and  a  full  shot-belt  crossing  his  right  shoulder  ;  a  pair 
of  fustian  trowsers,  patched  at  the  knees  with  corduroy,  and 
heavy  cowhide  boots  completed  his  attire.  This,  as  it  seemed, 
was  to  be  our  huntsman  ;  and  sooth  to  say,  although  he  did 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  S7 

not  look  the  character,  he  played  the  part,  when  he  got  to  work, 
right  handsomely.  At  a  more  fitting  season,  Harry  in  a  few 
words  let  me  into  this  worthy's  history  and  disposition.  "  He 
is,"  he  said,  "  the  most  incorrigible  rascal  I  ever  met  with — an 
unredeemed  and  utter  vagabond ;  he  started  life  as  a  stallion* 
leader,  a  business  which  he  understands — as  in  fact  he  does  al- 
most every  thing  else  within  his  scope — thoroughly  well.  He 
got  on  prodigiously  ! — was  employed  by  the  first  breeders  in 
the  country  ! — took  to  drinking,  and  then,  in  due  rotation,  to 
gambling,  pilfering,  lying,  every  vice,  in  short,  which  is  com- 
patible with  utter  want  of  any  thing  like  moral  sense,  deep 
shrewdness,  and  uncommon  cowardice. 

"  He  cut  his  throat  once — you  may  see  the  scar  now — in  a 
fit  of  delirium  tremens,  and  Tom  Draw,  who,  though  he  is  per- 
petually cursing  him  for  the  most  lying  critter  under  heaven, 
has,  I  believe,  a  sort  of  fellow  feeling  for  him — nursed  him  and 
gut  him  well ;  and  ever  since  he  has  hung  about  here,  getting 
at  times  a  country  stallion  to  look  after,  at  others  hunting,  or 
fishing,  or  doing  little  jobs  about  the  stable,  for  which  Tom 
gives  him  plenty  of  abuse,  plenty  to  eat,  and  as  little  rum  as 
possible,  for  if  he  gets  a  second  glass  it  is  all  up  with  Jem  Lyn 
for  a  week  at  least. 

"  He  came  to  see  me  once  in  New  York,  when  I  was  down 
upon  my  back  with  a  broken  leg — I  was  lying  in  the  parlor, 
about  three  weeks  after  the  accident  had  happened.  Tim.  Mat- 
lock  had  gone  out  for  something,  and  the  cook  let  him  in  ;  and, 
after  he  had  sat  there  about  lialf  an  hour,  telling  me  all  the 
news  of  the  races,  and  making  me  laugh  more  than  was  good 
for  my  broken  leg,  he  gave  me  such  a  hint,  that  I  was  compelled 
to  direct  him  to  the  cupboard,  wherein  1  kept  the  liquor-stand ; 
and  unluckily  enough,  as  I  had  not  for  some  time  been  in  drink- 
ing tune,  all  three  of  the  bottles  were  brimful ;  and,  as  I  am  a 
Christian  man,  he  drank  in  spite  of  all  I  could  say — I  could  not 
leave  the  couch  to  get  at  him — two  of  them  to  the  dregs  ;  and, 
after  frightening  me  almost  to  death,  fell  flat  upon  the  floor,  and 
lay  there  fast  asleep  when  Tim  came  in  again.  He  dragged  him 
instantly,  by  my  directions,  under  the  pump  in  the  garden,  and 
soused  him  for  about  two  hours,  but  without  producing  the 
least  effect,  except  eliciting  a  grunt  or  two  from  this  most  sea- 
soned cask. 

a  Such  is  Jem  Lyn,  and  yet,  absurd  to  say,  I  have  tried  the 
fellow,  and  believe  him  perfectly  trustworthy — at  least  to  me  ! 


S3  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

"He  is  a  coward,  yet  I  have  seen  him  fight  like  a  hero  more 
than  once,  and  against  heavy  odds,  to  save  me  from  a  threshing, 
which  I  got  after  all,  though  not  without  some  damage  to  our 
foes,  whose  name  might  have  been  legion. 

"  He  is  the  greatest  liar  I  ever  met  with ;  and  yet  I  never 
caught  him  in  a  falsehood,  for  he  believes  it  is  no  use  to  tell 
me  one. 

"  He  is  most  utterly  dishonest,  yet  I  have  trusted  him  with 
sums  that  would,  in  his  opinion,  have  made  him  a  rich  man  for 
life,  and  he  accounted  to  the  utmost  shilling  ;  but  I  advise  you 
not  to  try  the  same,  for  if  you  do  he  most  assuredly  will  cheat 
you !" 

Among  the  heavy  looking  hounds,  which  clustered  round  this 
hopeful  gentleman,  I  quickly  singled  out  two  couple  of  widely 
different  breed  and  character  from  the  rest ;  your  thorough 
high-bred  racing  fox-hounds,  with  ears  rounded,  thin  shining 
coats,  clean  limbs,  and  all  the  marks  of  the  best  class  of  English 
hounds. 

"  Aye  !  Frank,"  said  Archer,  as  he  caught  my  eye  fixed  on 
them,  "  you  have  found  out  my  favorites.  Why,  Bonny  Belle, 
good  lass,  why  Bonny  Belle  •! — here  Blossom,  Blossom,  come 
Up  and  show  your  pretty  figures  to  your  countryman!  Poor 
Hanbury — do  you  remember,  Frank,  how  many  a  merry  day 
we've  had  with  him  by  Thorley  Church,  and  Takely  forest  ? — 
poor  Hanbury  sent  them  to  me  with  such  a  letter,  only  the  year 
before  he  died;  and  those,  Dauntless  and  Dangerous,  I  had 
from  Will,  Lord  Harewood's  huntsman,  the  same  season  -!" 

"  There  never  was  sich  dogs — there  never  was  afore  in  Or- 
ange," said  Tom.  "I  will  say  that,  though  they  be  English^ 
and  though  they  be  too  fast  for  fox,  entirely,  there  never  was 
sich  dogs  for  deer" — 

"But  how  the  deuce,"  I  interrupted,  "can  hounds  be  too 
fast,  if  they  have  bone  and  stanchness !'' 

"  Stanchness  be  darned  ;  they  holes  them  ln 

"  No  earthstoppers  in  these  parts,  Frank,"  cried  Harry  ;  "  and 
•as  the  object  of  these  gentlemen  is  not  to  hunt  solely  for  the 
fun  of  the  thing,  but  to  destroy  a  noxious  varmint,  they  prefer 
a  slow,  sure,  deep-mouthed  dog,  that  does  not  press  too  closely 
•on  Pug,  but  lets  him  take  his  time  about  the  coverts,  till  he 
•comes  into  fair  gunshot  of  these  hunters,  who  are  lying  perdu 
•as  he  runs  to  get  a  crack  at  him.'7 

**  And  pray,"  said  I,  "is  this  your  method  of  proceeding  3" 


WARWICK  WOODLANDS.  8$ 

M  You  shall  see,  you  shall  see  ;  come  get  to  horse,  or  it  will 
be  late  before  we  get  our  breakfast,  and  1  assure  you  I  don't 
wish  to  lose  either  that,  or  my  days's  quail-shooting.  This 
hunt  is  merely  for  a  change,  and  to  get  something  of  an  appe* 
tite  for  breakfast*  Now,  Tim,  be  sure  that  every  thing  is  ready 
by  eight  o'clock  at  the  latest — we  shall  be  in  by  that  time  with. 
a  furious  appetite." 

Thus  saying  he  mounted,  without  more  delay}  his  favorite, 
the  gray  ;  while  I  backed)  nothing  loth,  the  chestnut  horse  5 
and  at  the  same  time  to  my  vast  astonishment,  from  under  the 
long  shed  out  rode  the  mighty  Tom,  bestriding  a  tall  powerful 
brown  mare,  showing  a  monstrous  deal  of  blood  combined  with 
no  slight  bone — equipped  with  a  cavalry  bridle,  and  strange  to 
say,  without  the  universal  martingal  ;  he  was  rigged  just  as 
usual,  with  the  exception  of  a  broad-brimmed  hat  in  place  of 
his  fur  cap)  and  grasped  in  his  right  hand  a  heavy  smooth-bored 
rifle,  while  with  the  left  he  wheeled  his  mare,  with  a  degree  of 
active  skill,  which  I  should  certainly  have  looked  for  any  where 
rather  than  in  so  vast  a  mass  of  flesh  as  that  which  was  exhibi* 
ted  by  our  worthy  host. 

Two  other  sportsmen,  grave>  sober-looking  farmers,  whom 
Harry  greeted  cheerily  by  name,  and  to  whom  in  all  due  form 
I  was  next  introduced,  well-mounted,  and  armed  with  long  sin- 
gle-barrelled guns,  completed  our  party  ;  and  away  we  went  at 
a  rattling  trot,  the  hounds  following  at  Archer's  heels,  as  stead4 
ily  as  though  he  hunted  them  three  times  a  week. 

"  Now  arn't  it  a  strange  thing,"  said  Tom,  "  arn't  it  a  strange 
thing,  Mr»  Forester,  that  every  critter  under  Heaven  takes 
somehow  nat'rally  to  that  are  Archer — the  very  hounds — old 
Whino  there  !  that  I  have  had  these  eight  years,  and  fed  with 
my  own  hands,  and  hunted  steady  every  winter,  quits  me  the 
very  moment  he  claps  sight  on  him  ;  by  the  eternal,  I  believe 
he  is  half  dog  himseitV 

"  You  hunted  them  indeed,"  interrupted  Harry,  "  you  old 
rhinoceros,  why  hang  your  hide,  you  never  so  much  as  heard  a 
good  view-holloa  till  I  came  up  here — you  hunted  them — a 
man  talk  of  hunting,  that  carries  a  cannon  about  with  him  on 
horseback  ;  but  come,  where  are  we  to  try  first,  on  Rocky  Hill, 
or  in  the  Spring  Swamps  ?'5 

"  Why  now  I  reckon,  Archer,  we'd  best  stop  down  to  Sam 
Blain's — by  the  blacksmith's — he  was  telling  t'other  morning  of 
an  eternal  sight  of  them  he'd  seen  down  hereaway — and  we'll 


40  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

be  there  to  rights ! — Jem,  cus  you,  out  of  my  way,  you  dumb 
nigger — out  of  my  way,  or  I'll  ride  over  you'*  —  for,  travelling 
along  at  a  strange  shambling  run,  that  worthy  had  contrived  to 
keep  up  with  us,  though  we  were  going  fully  at  the  rate  of  eight 
or  nine  miles  in  the  hour. 

"  Hurrah  !"  cried  Tom,  suddenly  pulling  up  at  the  door  of  a 
neat  farm-house  on  the  brow  of  a  hill,  with  a  clear  streamlet  sweep- 
ing round  its  base,  and  a  fine  piece  of  woodland  at  the  farther 
side.  "  Hurrah  !  Sam  Blain,we've  come  to  make  them  foxes,  you 
were  telling  of  a  Sunday,  sme.ll  h — 11  right  straight  away.  Here's 
Archer,  and  another  Yorker  with  him — leastwise  an  Englisher  I 
should  say — and  Squire  Conklin,  and  Bill  Speers,  and  that  white 
nigger  Jem  !  Look  sharp,  I  say  !  Look  sharp,  cuss  you,  else 
we'll  pull  off  the  ruff  of  the  old  Immstead." 

In  a  few  minutes  Sam  made  his  appearance,  armed,  like  the 
rest,  with  a  Queen  Ann's  tower-musket. 

"  Well !  well !"  he  said,  "  I'm  ready.  Quit  making  such  a 
clatter  !  Lend  me  a  load  of  powder,  one  of  you  ;  my  horn's 
leaked  dry,  I  reckon  !'' 

Tom  forthwith  handed  him  his  own,  and  the  next  thing  I 
heard  was  Blain  exclaiming  that  it  was  "  desperate  pretty  pow- 
der," and  wondered  if  it  shot  strong. 

"Shoot  strong  ?  I  guess  you'll  rind  it  strong  enough  to  s^w 
you  up,  if  you  go  charging  your  old  musket  that  ways!''  answer- 
ed Tom.  "  By  the  Lord,  Archer,  he's  put  in  three  full  charges  P 

"  Well,  it  will  kill  him,  that's  all !"  answered  Harry,  very 
coolly  ;  "  and  there'll  be  one  less  of  you.  But  come  !  come  ! 
"let's  be  bustling;  the  sun's  going  to  get  up  already.  You'll 
leave  your  horses  here,  I  suppose,  gentlemen,  and  get  to  the  old 
stands.  Tom  Draw,  put  Mr.  Forester  at  my  old  post  down  by 
the  big  pin-oak  at  the  creek  side  ;  and  you  stand  there,  Frank, 
still  as  a  church-mouse.  It's  ten  to  one,  if  some  of  those  fellows 
don't  shoot  him  first,  that  he'll  break  covert  close  by  you,  and 
run  the  meadows  for  a  mile  or  two,  up  to  the  turnpike  road, 
and  over  it  to  Rocky  hill — that  black  knob  yonder,  covered  with 
pine  and  hemlock.  There  are  some  queer  snake  fences  in  the 
flat,  and  a  big  brook  or  two,  but  Peacock  has  been  over  every 
inch  of  it  before,  and  you  may  trust  in  him  implicitly.  Good 
bye  !  I'm  going  up  the  road  with  Jem  to  drive  it  from  the 
.upper  end." 

And  off  he  went  at  a  merry  trot,  with  the  hounds  gamboling 
about  his  stirrups,  and  Jem  Lyn  running  at  his  best  pace  to  keep 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  41 

up  with  him.  In  a  few  minutes  they  were  lost  behind  a  swell 
of  woodland,  round  which  the  road  wheeled  suddenly.  At  the 
same  moment  Tom  and  his  companions  re-appeared  from  the 
stables,  where  they  had  been  securing  their  four-footed  friends  ; 
and,  after  a  few  seconds,  spent  in  running  ramrods  down  the 
barrels  to  see  that  all  was  right,  inspecting  primings,  knapping 
flints,  or  putting  on  fresh  copper  caps,  it  was  announced  that  all 
was  ready  ;  and  passing  through  the  farm-yard,  we  entered, 
through  a  set  of  bars,  a  broad  bright  buckwheat  stubble.  Scarcely 
an  hundred  yards  had  we  proceeded,  before  we  sprung  the  finest 
bevy  of  the  largest  quail  I  had  yet  seen,  and  flying  high  and 
wild  crossed  half-a-dozen  fields  in  the  direction  of  the  village, 
whence  we  had  started,  and  pitched  at  length  into  an  alder  brake 
beside  the  stream. 

u  Them  chaps  has  gone  the  right  way,"  Tom  exclaimed,  with 
a  deep  sigh,  who  had  with  wondrous  difficulty  refrained  from 
firing  into  them,  though  he  was  loaded  with  buckshot ;  "  right 
in  the  couise  we  count  to  take  this  forenoon.  Now,  Squire,  keep 
to  the  left  here,  take  your  station  by  the  old  earths  there  away, 
under  the  tall  dead  pine;  and  you,  Bill,  make  tracks  there, straight 
through  the  middle  cart- way,  down  to  the  other  meadow,  and 
sit  you  down  right  where  the  two  streams  fork  ;  there'll  be  an 
old  red  snooping  down  that  side  afore  long,  I  reckon.  We'll  go 
on,  Mr.  Forester  ;  here's  a  big  rail  fence  nowr ;  1*11  throw  off  the 
top  rail,  for  I'll  be  darned  if  I  climb  any  day  when  I  can  creep 
— there,  that'll  do,  I  reckon  ;  leastwise  if  you  can  ride  like  Ar- 
cher— he  d — ns  me  always  if  I  so  much  as  shakes  a  fence  afore 
lie  jumps  it — you've  got  the  best  horse,  too,  for  lepping.  Now 
let's  see  !  Well  done  !  well  done  !"  he  continued,  with  a  most 
boisterous  burst  of  laughter — "  well  done,  horse,  any  how  !" — as 
Peacock,  who  had  been  chafing  ever  since  he  parted  from  his 
comrade  Bob,  went  at  the  fence  as  though  he  were  about  to  take 
it  in  his  stroke  —  stopped  short  when  within  a  yard  of  it,  and 
then  bucked  over  it,  without  touching  a  splinter,  although  it  was 
at  least  five  feet,  and  shaking  me  so  much,  that,  greatly  to  Tom's 
joy,  I  showed  no  little  glimpse  of  day-light. 

44 1  reckon  if  they  run  the  meadows,  you'll  hardly  ride  them, 
Forester,"  he  grinned  ;  44  but  now  away  with  you.  You  see  the 
tall  dark  pin  oak,  it  hasn't  lost  one  leaf  yet ;  right  in  the  nook 
there  of  the  bars  you'll  find  a  quiet  shady  spot,  where  you  can 
see  clear  up  the  rail  fence  to  this  knob,  where  I'll  be.  Off  with 
you,  boy — and  mind  you  now,  you  keep  as  dumb  as  the  old  wo- 


42  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

man  when  her  husband  cut  her  tongue  out,  'cause  she  had  too 
much  jaw." 

Finishing  his  discourse,  he  squatted  himself  down  on  the  stool 
of  a  largo  hemlock,  which,  being  recently  cut  down,  cumbered 
the  woodside  with  its  giant  stern,  and  secured  him,  with  its  ever- 
green top  now  lowly  laid  and  withering,  from  the  most  narrow 
scrutiny ;  while  I,  giving  the  gallant  horse  his  head,  went  at  a 
brisk  hand-gallop  across  the  firm  short  turf  of  the  fair  sloping 
hill-side,  taking  a  moderate  fence  in  my  stroke,  which  Peacock 
cleared  in  a  style  that  satisfied  me  Harry  had  by  no  means  ex- 
aggerated his  capacity  to  act  as  hunter,  in  lieu  of  the  less  glorious 
occupation,  to  which  in  general  he  was  doomed. 

In  half  a  minute  more  I  reached  my  post,  and  though  an  hour 
passed  before  I  heard  the  slightest  sound  betokening  the  chase, 
never  did  I  more  thoroughly  enjoy  an  hour. 

The  loveliness  of  the  whole  scene  before  me — the  broad  rich 
sweep  of  meadowland  lying,  all  bathed  in  dew,  under  the  pale 
gray  light  of  an  autumnal  morning,  with  groups  of  cattle  couch- 
ed still  between  the  trees  where  they  had  passed  the  night ;  the 
distant  hills,  veiled  partially  in  mist,  partially  rearing  their  round 
leafy  heads  toward  the  brightening  sky  ;  and  then  the  various 
changes  of  the  landscape,  as  slowly  the  day  broke  behind  the 
eastern  hill ;  and  all  the  various  sounds  of  bird,  and  beast,  and 
insect,  which  each  succeeding  variation  of  the  morning  served 
to  call  into  life  as  if  by  magic.  First  a  faint  rosy  flush  stole  up 
the  eastern  sky,  and  nearly  at  the  self-same  moment,  two  or 
three  vagrant  crows  came  flapping  heavily  along,  at  a  height  so 
immeasurable  that  their  harsh  voices  were  by  distance  modified 
into  a  pleasing  murmur.  And  now  a  little  fish  jumped  in  the 
streamlet ;  and  the  splash,  trifling  as  it  was,  with  which  he  fell 
back  on  the  quiet  surface,  half  startled  me. 

A  moment  afterward  an  acorn  plumped  down  on  my  head,  and 
as  I  looked  up,  there  sat,  on  a  limb  not  ten  feet  above  me,  an 
impudent  rogue  of  a  gray  squirrel,  half  as  big  as  a  rabbit,  erect 
upon  his  haunches,  working  away  at  the  twin  brother  of  the 
acorn  he  had  dropped  upon  my  hat  to  break  my  reverie,  rasping 
it  audibly  with  his  chisel-shaped  teeth,  and  grinning  at  me  just 
as  coolly  as  though  I  were  a  harmless  scare-crow. 

When  I  grew  tired  of  observing  him,  and  looked  toward  the 
sky  again,  behold  the  western  ridge,  which  is  far  higher  than  the 
eastern  hills,  had  caught  upon  its  summits  the  first  bright  rays 
of  the  yet  unseen  day-god ;  while  the  rosy  flush  of  the  east  had 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  43 

brightened  into  a  blaze  of  living  gold,  exceeded  only  by  the  glo- 
rious hues  with  which  a  few  bright  specks  of  misty  cloud  glowed 
out  against  the  azure  firmament,  like  coals  of  actual  tire. 

Again  a  louder  splash  aroused  me;  and,  as  I  turned,  there  float- 
ed on  a  glassy  basin,  into  which  the  ripples  of  a  tiny  fall  sub- 
sided, three  wood-ducks,  with  a  noble  drake,  that  loveliest  in 
plumage  of  all  aquatic  fowl,  perfectly  undisturbed  and  fearless, 
although  within  ten  yards  of  their  most  dreaded  enemy. 

How  beautiful  are  all  their  motions  !  There  !  one  has  reared 
herself  half  way  out  of  the  water;  another  stretches  forth  a 
delicate  web  foot  to  scratch  her  ear,  as  handily  as  a  dog  on  dry 
land  ;  and  now  the  drake  reflects  his  purple  neck  to  preen  his 
ruffled  wing,  and  now — bad  luck  to  you,  Peacock,  why  did  you 
snort  and  stamp  ?  —  they  are  off  like  a  bullet,  and  out  of  sight 
in  an  instant. 

And  now  out  comes  the  sun  himself,  and  with  him  the  accur- 
sed hum  of  a  musquitoe — and  hark  !  hush  ! — what  was  that  ? 
— was  it  ?  By  Heavens  !  it  was  the  deep  note  of  a  fox- hound  ! 
Aye  !  there  comes  Harry's  cheer,  faintly  heard,  swelling  up  the 
breeze. 

"  Have  at  him,  there  !     Ha-a-ve  at  him,  good  lads  !" 

Again  !  again  !  those  are  the  musical  deep  voices  of  the  slow 
hounds  !  They  have  a  dash  in  them  of  the  old  Southern  breed  ! 
And  now  !  there  goes  the  yell!  the  quick  sharp  yelping  rally  of 
those  two  high-bred  bitches. 

By  heaven  !  they  must  be  viewing  him  !  How  the  woods  ring 
and  crash  ! 

u  Together  hark  !  Together  hark  !  Together  !  For-ra-ard, 
good  lads,  get  fur-a-ard  !  Hya~a-aravvay  !'' 

Well  halloaed,  Harry  !  I  could  swear  to  that  last  screech,  out 
of  ten  thousand,  though  it  is  near  ten  years  since  I  last  heard  it ! 
But  heavens  !  how  they  press  him  !  Hang  it !  there  goes  a  shot 
— the  squire  has  fired  at  him,  as  he  tried  the  earths  !  Now,  if 
he  have  but  missed  him,  and  Pan,  the  god  of  hunters,  send  it 
so,  he  has  no  chance  but  to  try  the  open. 

By  Jove  he  has  !  he  must  have  missed !  for  Bonny  Belle  and 
Blossom  are  raving  half  a  mile  this  side  of  him  already.  And 
now  Tom  sees  him  —  how  quietly  he  steals  up  to  the  fence. 
There  !  he  has  fired  !  and  all  our  sport  is  up !  No !  no  !  he 
waves  his  hat  and  points  this  way  !  Can  he  have  missed  ?  No  ! 
he  has  got  a  fox  !  —  he  lifts  it  out  by  the  brush  —  there  must 
have  been  two,  then,  on  foot  together.  He  has  done  it  well  to 


44  WARWICK   WOODIJ^7DS. 

get  that  he  has  killed  away,   or  they  would  have  stopped  on 
him  ! 

Hush  !  the  leaves  rustle  here  beside  me,  with  a  quick  patter — 
the  twigs  crackle — it  is  he  !  Move  not !  not  for  your  life,  Peacock  ! 
There  !  he  has  broken  cover  fairly  !  Now  he  is  half  across  the 
field !  he  stops  to  listen  !  Ah  !  he  will  head  again.  No  !  no  ! 
that  crash,  when  they  came  upon  the  warm  blood,  has  decided 
him — away  he  goes,  with  his  brush  high,  and  its  white  tag  bran- 
dished in  the  sunshine — now  I  may  halloa  him  away. 

u  Whoop  !  gone  awa-ay  !  whoop  !v 

I  was  answered  on  the  instant  by  Harry's  quick — 

"  Hark  holloa !  get  awa-ay  !  to  him  hark  !  to  him  hark  !  hark 
holloa !" 

Most  glorious  Artemis,  what  heaven-stirring  music  !  And  yet 
there  are  but  poor  six  couple ;  the  scent  must  be  as  hot  as  fine, 
for  every  hound  seems  to  have  twenty  tongues,  and  every  leaf 
an  hundred  echoes !  How  the  boughs  crash  again  !  Lo  !  they 
are  here  !  Bonny  Belle  leading — head  and  stern  up,  with  a  quick 
panting  yelp  !  Blossom,  and  Dangerous,  and  Dauntless  scarcely 
a  length  behind  her,  striving  together,  neck  and  neck ;  and,  by 
St.  Hubert,  it  must  be  a  scent  of  twenty  thousand,  for  here 
these  heavy  Southrons  are  scarcely  two  rods  behind  them. 

But  fidget  not,  good  Peacock  !  fret  not,  most  excellent  Pytha- 
goras !  one  moment  more,  and  I  am  not  the  boy  to  baulk  you. 
And  here  comes  Harry  on  the  gray  ;  by  George  !  he  makes  the 
brushwood  crackle  !  Now  for  a  nasty  leap  out  of  the  tangled 
swamp  !  a  high  six-barred  fence  of  rough  trees,  leaning  toward 
him,  and  up  hill !  surely  he  will  not  try  it ! 

Will  he  not  though  ? 

See ! — his  rein  is  tight  yet  easy  !  his  seat,  how  beautiful,  how 
firm,  yet  how  relaxed  and  graceful !  Well  done,  indeed  !  He 
slacks  his  rein  one  instant  as  the  gray  rises  !  the  rugged  rails 
are  cleared,  and  the  firm  pull  supports  him  !  but  Harry  moves 
not  in  the  saddle — no  !  not  one  hair's  breadth  !  A  five  foot  fence 
to  him  is  nothing  !  You  shall  not  see  the  slightest  variation 
between  his  attitude  in  that  strong  effort,  and  in  the  easy  gallop. 
If  Tom  Draw  saw  him  now,  he  could  have  some  excuse  for  call- 
ing him  "  half  horse" — and  he  does  see  him  !  hark  to  that 
most  unearthly  knell !  like  unto  nothing,  either  heavenly  or  hu- 
man !  He  waves  his  hat  and  hurries  back  as  fast  as  he  is  able 
to  the  horses,  well  knowing  that  for  pedestrians  at  least,  the 
morning's  sport  is  ended. 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  45 

Harry  and  I  were  now  almost  abreast,  riding  in  parallel  lines, 
down  the  rich  valley,  very  nearly  at  the  top  speed  of  our  horses  ; 
taking  fence  after  fence  in  our  stroke,  and  keeping  well  up  with 
the  hounds,  which  were  running  almost  mute,  such  was  the  fu- 
rious speed  to  which  the  blazing  scent  excited  them. 

We  had  already  passed  above  two-thirds  of  the  whole  dis- 
tance that  divides  the  range  of  woods,  wherein  we  found  him, 
and  the  pretty  village  which  we  had  constituted  our  head  quar- 
ters, a  distance  of  at  least  three  miles ;  and  now  a  very  difficult 
and  awkward  obstacle  presented  itself  to  our  farther  progress,  in 
the  shape  of  a  wide  yawning  brook  between  sheer  banks  of  sev- 
eral feet  in  height,  broken,  with  rough  and  pointed  stones,  the 
whole  being  at  least  five  yards  across.  The  gallant  hounds 
dashed  over  it ;  and,  when  we  reached  it,  were  half  way  across 
the  grass  field  next  beyond  it. 

"  Hold  him  hard,  Frank,"  Harry  shouted  ;  "  hold  him  hard, 
man,  and  cram  him  at  it !" 

And  so  I  did,  though  I  had  little  hope  of  clearing  it.  I  lifted 
him  a  little  on  the  snaffle,  gave  him  the  spur  just  as  he  reached 
the  brink,  and  with  a  long  and  swinging  leap,  so  easy  that  its 
motion  was  in  truth  scarce  perceptible,  he  swept  across  it ;  be- 
fore I  had  the  time  to  think,  we  were  again  going  at  our  best 
pace  almost  among  the  hounds. 

Over  myself,  I  cast  a  quick  glance  back  toward  Harry,  who, 
by  a  short  turn  of  the  chase  had  been  thrown  a  few  yards  be- 
hind me.  He  charged  it  gallantly ;  but  on  the  very  verge, 
cowed  by  the  brightness  of  the  rippling  water,  the  gray  made  a 
half  stop,  but  leaped  immediately,  beneath  the  application  of 
the  galling  spur ;  he  made  a  noble  effort,  but  it  was  scarce  a 
thing  to  be  effected  by  a  standing  leap,  and  it  was  with  far  less 
pleasure  than  surprise,  that  I  saw  him  drop  his  hind  legs  down 
the  steep  bank,  having  just  landed  with  fore-feet  in  the  meadow. 

I  was  afraid,  indeed,  he  must  have  had  an  ugly  fall,  but, 
picked  up  quickly  by  the  delicate  and  steady  finger  of  his  rider, 
the  good  horse  found  some  slight  projection  of  the  bank,  where- 
by to  make  a  second  spring.  After  a  heavy  flounder,  however, 
which  must  have  dismounted  any  less  perfect  horseman,  he  re- 
covered himself  well,  and  before  many  minutes  was  again  abreast 
of  me. 

Thus  far  the  course  of  the  hunted  fox  had  lain  directly  home- 
ward, down  the  valley ;  but  now  the  turnpike  road  making  a 
sudden  turn  crossed  his  line  at  right  angles,  while  another  nar- 


46  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

rower  road  coming  in  at  a  tangent,  went  off  to  the  south-west- 
ward in  the  direction  of  the  bold  projection,  which  i  had  learned 
to  recognise  as  Rocky  Hill ;  over  the  high  I'ence  into  the  road  ; 
well  performed,  gallant  horses  !  And  now  they  check  for  a  mo- 
ment, puzzling  about  on  the  dry  sandy  turnpike. 

u  Dangerous  feathers  on  it  now!  Speak  to  it !  speak  to  it. 
good  hound  !" 

How  beautiful  that  flourish  of  the  stern  with  which  he  darts 
away  on  the  recovered  scent;  with  what  a  yell  they  open  it 
once  again !  Harry  was  right,  he  makes  for  Rocky  Hill,  but  up 
this  plaguey  lane,  where  the  scent  lies  but  faintly.  Now!  now! 
the  road  turns  off  again  far  westward  of  his  point !  He  may,  by 
Jove  !  and  he  has  left  it ! 

"  Have  at  him  then,  lads ;  he  is  ours  !" 

And  lo  !  the  pace  increases.  Ha !  what  a  sudden  turn,  and 
in  the  middle  too  of  a  clear  pasture. 

"  Has  he  been  headed,  Harry  ?" 

u  No,  no  ;  his  strength  is  failing." 

And  see !  he  makes  his  point  again  toward  the  hill ;  it  is 
within  a  quarter  of  a  mile,  and  if  he  gain  it  we  can  do  nothing 
with  him,  for  it  is  full  of  earths.  But  he  will  never  reach  it. 
See  !  he  turns  once  again  ;  how  exquisitely  well  those  bitches 
run  it;  three  times  he  has  doubled,  now  almost  as  short  as  a 
hare,  and  they,  running  breast-high,  have  turned  with  him  each 
time,  not  over-running  it  a  yard. 

See  how  the  sheep  have  drawn  together  into  phalanx  yonder, 
in  that  bare  pasture  to  the  eastward  ;  he  has  crossed  that  field 
for  a  thousand  !  Yes,  I  am  right.  See  !  they  turn  once  again. 
What  a  delicious  rally !  An  outspread  towel  would  cover  those 
four  leading  hounds  —  now  Dauntless  has  it;  has  it  by  half  a 
neck. 

"  He  always  goes  up  when  a  fox  is  sinking,"  Harry  exclaimed, 
pointing  toward  him  with  his  hunting  whip. 

Aye  !  he  has  given  up  his  point  entirely ;  he  knew  he  could 
not  face  the  hill.  Look  !  look  at  those  carrion  crows  !  how  low 
they  stoop  over  that  woody  bank.  That  is  his  line.  Here  is 
the  road  again.  Over  it  once  more  merrily !  and  now  we  view  him. 

"  Whoop  !     Forra-ard,  lads,  forra-ard  !" 

He  cannot  hold  five  minutes ;  and  see,  there  comes  fat  Tom, 
pounding  that  mare  along  the  road  as  if  her  fore-feet  were  of 
hammered  iron  ;  he  has  come  up  along  the  turnpike,  at  an  in- 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  47 

fernal  pace,  while  that  turn  favored  him ;  but  he  will  only  see 
us  kill  him,  and  that,  too,  at  a  respectful  distance. 

Another  brook  stretches  across  our  course,  hurrying  to  join 
the  greater  stream  along  the  banks  of  which  we  have  so  long 
been  speeding;  but  this  is  a  little  one;  there!  we  have  cleared 
it  cleverly.  Now  !  now  !  the  hounds  are  viewing  him.  Poor 
brute  !  his  day  is  come.  See  how  he  twists  and  doubles.  Ah  ! 
now  they  have  him  !  No  !  that  short  turn  has  saved  him,  and 
he  gains  the  fence — he  will  lie  down  there  !  No  !  he  stretches 
gallantly  across  the  next  field — game  to  the  last,  poor  devil ! 
There  ! 

"  Who-whoop  !     Dead  !  dead  !  who-whoop  !" 

And  in  another  instant  Harry  had  snatched  him  from  the 
hounds,  and  holding  him  aloft  displayed  him  to  the  rest,  as  they 
came  up  along  the  road. 

"  A  pretty  burst,"  he  said  to  me,  "  a  pretty  burst,  Frank,  and 
a  good  kill ;  but  they  can't  stand  before  the  hounds,  the  foxes 
here,  like  our  stout  islanders ;  they  are  not  forced  to  work  so 
hard  to  gain  their  living.  But  now  let  us  get  homeward ;  I 
want  my  breakfast,  I  can  tell  you,  and  then  a  rattle  at  the  quail. 
I  mean  to  get  full  forty  brace  to-day,  I  promise  you/7 

"And  we,"  said  I,  "have  marked  down  fifteen  brace  already 
toward  it ;  right  in  the  line  of  our  beat,  Torn  says." 

"  That's  right ;  well,  let  us  go  on.'7 

And  in  a  short  half  hour  we  were  all  once  again  assembled 
about  Tom's  hospitable  board,  and  making  such  a  breakfast,  on 
every  sort  of  eatable  that  can  be  crowded  on  a  breakfast  table, 
as  sportsmen  only  have  a  right  to  make ;  nor  they,  unless  they 
have  walked  ten,  or  galloped  half  as  many  miles,  before  it. 

Before  we  had  been  in  an  hour,  Harry  once  again  roused  us 
out.  All  had  been,  during  our  absence,  fully  prepared  by  the 
indefatigable  Tim ;  who,  as  the  day  before,  accoutred  with 
spare  shot  and  lots  of  provender,  seemed  to  grudge  us  each 
morsel  that  we  ate,  so  eager  was  he  to  see  us  take  the  field  in 
season. 

Off  we  went  then  ;  but  what  boots  it  to  repeat  a  thrice  told 
tale ;  suffice  it,  that  the  dogs  worked  as  well  as  dogs  can  work ; 
that  birds  were  plentiful,  and  lying  good ;  that  we  fagged  hard, 
and  shot  on  the  whole  passably,  so  that  by  sunset  we  had  ex- 
ceeded Harry's  forty  brace  by  fifteen  birds,  and  got  beside  nine 
couple  and  a  half  of  woodcock ;  which  we  found,  most  unex- 
pectedly, basking  themselves  in  the  open  meadow,  along  the 


48  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

grassy  banks  of  a  small  rill,  without  a  bush  or  tree  within  five 
hundred  yards  of  them. 

Evening  had  closed  before  we  reached  the  well  known  tavern- 
stand,  and  the  merry  blaze  of  the  fire,  and  many  candles, 
showed  us,  while  yet  far  distant,  that  due  preparations  were  in 
course  for  our  entertainment. 

"  What  have  we  here  ?"  cried  Harry,  as  we  reached  the  door 
— "  Race  horses  ?  Why,  Tom,  by  heaven  !  we've  got  the  Fly- 
ing Dutchman  here  again  ;  now  for  a  night  of  it." 

And  so  in  truth  it  was,  a  most  wet,  and  most  jovial  one,  sea- 
soned with  no  small  wit ;  but  of  that,  more  anon. 


DAY  THE  FOURTH. 

WHEN  we  had  entered  Tom's  hospitable  dwelling,  and  deliv- 
ered over  our  guns  to  be  duly  cleaned,  and  the  dogs  to  be  sup- 
pered,  by  Tim  Matlock,  I  passed  through  the  parlor,  on  my  way 
to  my  own  crib,  where  I  found  Archer  in  close  confabulation 
with  a  tall  rawboned  Dutchman,  with  a  keen  freckled  face,  small 
'cute  gray  eyes,  looking  suspiciously  about  from  under  the  shade 
of  a  pair  of  straggling  sandy  eyebrows,  small  reddish  whiskers, 
and  a  head  of  carroty  hair  as  rough  and  tangled  as  a  fox's  back. 

His  aspect  was  a  wondrous  mixture  of  sneakingness  and 
smartness,  and  his  expression  did  most  villainously  belie  him, 
if  he  were  not  as  sharp  a  customer  as  ever  wagged  an  elbow,  or 
betted  on  a  horse-race. 

"  Frank,"  exclaimed  Harry,  as  I  entered,  "  I  make  you  know 
Mr.  McTaggart,  better  known  hereabouts  as  the  Flying  Dutch- 
man, though  how  he  came  by  a  Scotch  name  I  can't  pretend  to 
say  ;  he  keeps  the  best  quarter  horses,  and  plays  the  best  hand 
of  whist  in  the  country ;  and  now,  get  yourself  clean  as  quick  as 
possible,  for  Tom  never  gives  one  five  minutes  wherein  to  dress 
himself;  so  bustle." 

And  off  he  went  as  he  had  finished  speaking,  and  I  shaking 
my  new  friend  cordially  by  an  exceeding  bony  unwashed  paw, 
incontinently  followed  his  example — and  in  good  time  I  did  so ; 
for  I  had  scarcely  changed  my  shooting  boots  and  wet  worsteds 
for  slippers  and  silk  socks,  before  my  door,  as  usual,  was  lounged 
open  by  Tom's  massy  foot,  and  I  was  thus  exhorted. 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS,  49 

*  Conre,  come,  your  supper's  gittin'  cold ;  I  never  see  such 
men  as  you  and  Archer  is ;  you're  wash,  wash,  wash — all  day. 
It's  little  water  enough  that  you  use  any  other  ways." 

"  Why,  is  there  any  other  use  for  water,  Tom  ?"  I  asked, 
sknply  enough, 

"It's  lucky  if  there  ahat,  any  how — leastwise,  where  you  and 
Archer  is — else  you'd  leave  none  for  the  rest  of  us.  It's  a  good 
thing  you  han't  thought  of  washing  your  darned  stinking  hides 
in  ruin — you  will  be  at  it  some  of  these  odd  days,  I  warrant 
me — why  now,  McTaggart,  it's  only  yesterday  I  caught  Archer 
up  stairs,  a  fiddling  away  up  there  at  his  teeth  with  a  little  ivory 
brush  ;  brushing  them  with  cold  water — cleaning  them  he  calls 
it.  Cuss  all  such  trash,  says  I." 

While  I  was  listening  in  mute  astonishment,  wondering 
whether  in  trutli  the  old  savage  never  cleaned  his  teeth,  Archer 
made  his  appearance,  and  to  a  better  supper  never  did  I  sit 
down,  than  was  spread  at  the  old  round  table,  in  such  profusion 
as  might  have  well  sufficed  to  feed  a  troop  of  horse. 

"  What  have  we  got  here,  Tom  2"  cried  Harry,  as  he  took  the 
head  of  the  social  board  ;  "  quail-pie,  by  George — are  there  any 
peppers  in  it,  Tom  '?'' 

"  Sartain  there  is,"  replied  that  worthy,  "  and  a  prime  rump- 
steak  in  the  bottom,  and  some  first-best  salt  pork,  chopped  fine, 
and  three  small  onions  ;  like  little  Wax-skin  used  to  fix  them, 
when  he  was  up  here  last  fall." 

"  Take  some  of  this  pie,  Frank  ;"  said  Archer,  as  he  handed 
me  a  huge  plate  of  leafy  reeking  pie-crust,  with  a  slice  of  fat 
steak,  and  a  plump  hen  quail,  and  gravy,  and  etceteras,  that  might 
have  made  an  alderman's  mouth  water  ;  "  and  if  you  don't  say 
it's  the  very  best  thing  you  ever  tasted,  you  are  not  half  so  good 
a  judge  as  I  used  to  hold  you.  It  took  little  Johnny  and  my- 
self three  wet  days  to  concoct  it.  Pie,  Tom,  or  roast  pig  ?"  he 
continued  ;  "  or  broiled  woodcock  ?  Here  they  are,  all  of 
them  ?" 

"  Why,  I  reckon  I'll  take  cock  ;  briled  meat  wants  to  be  ate 
right  stret  away  as  soon  as  it  comes  off  the  griddle ;  and  of  all 
darned  nice  ways  of  cooking,  to  brile  a  thing,  quick  now,  over 
hot  hickory  ashes,  is  the  best  for  me  !" 

"  I  believe  you're  right  about  eating  the  cock  first,  for  they 
will  not  be  worth  a  farthing  if  they  get  cold.  So  you  stick  to 
the  pig,  do  you— hey,  McTaggart  ?  Well,  there  is  no  reckoning 

3 


50  WARWICK   WOODLANDS, 

on  taste — holloa,  Tim,  look  sharp  1  the  champagne  all  'round— 
I'm  choaking !" 

And  for  some  time  no  sound  was  heard,  but  the  continuous 
clatter  of  knives  and  forks,  the  occasional  popping  of  a  cork, 
succeeded  by  the  gurgling  of  the  generous  wine  as  it  flowed  in- 
to the  tall  rummers  ;  and  every  now  and  then  a  loud  and  rat- 
tling eructation  from  Tom  Draw,  who*  as  he  saidr  could  never 
half  enjoy  a  meal  if  he  could  not  stop  now  and  then  to  blow 
off  steam. 

At  last,  however — for  supper,  alas  I  like  all  other  earthly 
pleasures,  must  come  to  an  end — "  The  fairest  still  the  fleetest" 
— our  appetites  waned  gradually  ;  and  notwithstanding  Harry's 
earnest  exhortations,  and  the  production  of  a  broiled  ham-bone, 
devilled  to  the  very  utmost  pitch  of  English  mustard,  soy,  oil 
of  Aix,  and  cayenne  pepper,  by  no  hands,  as  may  be  guessed, 
but  those  of  that  universal  genius,  Timothy  ;  one  by  oney  we 
gave  over  our  labors  edacious,  to  betake  us  to  potations  of  no 
small  depth  or  frequency. 

"  It  is  directly  contrary  to  my  rule,  Frank,  to  drink  before  a 
good  day's  shooting — and  a  good  day  I  mean  to  have  to-mor- 
row ! — but  I  am  thirsty,  and  the  least  thought  chilly  ;  so  here 
goes  for  a  debauch  !  Tim,  look  in  my  box  with  the  clothes,  and 
you  will  find  two  flasks  of  Curasao  ;  bring  them  down,  and  a 
dozen  lemons,  and  some  lump  sugar — look  alive  !  and  you,  Tomr 
out  with  your  best  brandy ;  I'll  make  a  jorum  that  will  open 
your  eyes  tight  before  you've  done  with  it.  That's  right,  Tim ; 
now  get  the  soup-tureen,  the  biggest  one,  and  see  that  it's  clean. 
The  old  villain  has  got  a  punch-bowl — bring  half  a  dozen  of 
champagne,  a  bucket  full  of  ice,  and  then  go  down  into  the 
kitchen,  and  make  two  quarts  of  green  tea,  as  strong  as  possi- 
ble ;  and  when  it's  made,  set  it  to  cool  in  the  ice-house  !" 

In  a  few  minutes  all  the  ingredients  were  at  hand  ;  the  rind, 
peeled  carefully  from  all  the  lemons,  was  deposited  with  two 
tumblers  full  of  finely  powdered  sugar  in  the  bottom  of  the  tu- 
reen ;  thereupon  were  poured  instantly  three  pints  of  pale  old 
Cognac  ;  and  these  were  left  to  steep,  without  admixture,  until 
Tim  Matlock  made  his  entrance  with  the  cold,  strong,  green  tea ; 
two  quarts  of  this,  strained  clear,  were  added  to  the  brandy,  and 
then  two  flasks  of  curagoa  ! 

Into  this  mixture  a  dozen  lumps  of  clear  ice  were  thrown,  arid 
the  whole  stirred  up  'till  the  sugar  was  entirely  suspended  ;  then 
pop  !  pop  !  went  the  long  necks,  and  their  creaming  nectar  was 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  51 

discharged  into  the  bowl ;  and  by  the  body  of  Bacchus — as  the 
Italians  swear — and  by  his  soul,  too,  which  he  never  steeped  in 
such  delicious  nectar,  what  a  drink  that  was,  when  it  was  com- 
pleted. 

Even  Tom  Draw,  who  ever  was  much  disposed  to  look  upon 
strange  potables  as  trash,  and  who  had  eyed  the  whole  proceed- 
ings with  ill-concealed  suspicion  and  disdain,  when  he  had  quaffed 
off  a  pint-beaker  full,  which  he  did  without  once  moving  the 
vessel  from  his  head,  smacked  his  lips  with  a  report  which  might 
have  been  heard  half  a  mile  off,  and  which  resembled  very 
nearly  the  crack  of  a  first-rate  huntsman's  whip. 

"  That's  not  slow,  now  !''  he  said,  half  dubiously,  "  to  tell 
the  truth  now,  that's  first  rate  ;  I  reckon,  though,  it  would  be 
better  if  there  wasn't  that  tea  into  it — it  makes  it  weak  and 
trashy-like !" 

"  You  be  hanged  !''  answered  Harry,  "  that's  mere  affectation — 
that  smack  of  your  lips  told  the  story  ;  did  you  ever  hear  such 
an  infernal  sound  ?  I  never  did,  by  George  !" 

"  Begging  your  pardon,  Measter  Archer,''  interposed  Timothy, 
pulling  ids  forelock,  with  an  expression  of  profound  respect, 
mingled  with  a  ludicrous  air  of  regret,  at  being  forced  to  differ 
in  the  least  degree  from  his  master  ;  "  begging  your  pardon, 
Measter  Archer,  that  was  a  roommer  noise,  and  by  a  vary  gre-at 
de-al  too,  when  Measter  McTavish  sneezed  me  clean  oot  o'  t' 

° W7hat's  that  ?— what  the  devil's  that  ?"  cried  I ;  "this  Mc- 
Tavish must  be  a  queer  genius  ;  one  day  I  hear  of  his  frighten- 
ing a  bull  out  of  a  meadow,  and  the  next  of  his  sneezing  a  man 
out  of  a  phaeton." 

"  It's  simply  true  !  both  are  simply  true  !  We  were  driving- 
very  slowly  on  an  immensely  hot  day  in  the  middle  of  August, 
between  Lebanon  Springs  and  Claverack  ;  McTavish  and  I  on 
the  front  seat,  and  Tim  behind.  Well !  we  were  creeping  at  a 
foot's  pace,  upon  a  long,  steep  hill,  just  at  the  very  hottest  time 
of  day  ;  not  a  word  had  been  spoken  for  above  an  hour,  for  we 
were  all  tired  and  languid — except  once,  when  McTavish  asked 
for  his  third  tumbler,  since  breakfast,  of  Starke's  Feriritosh,  of 
which  we  had  three  two-quart  bottles  in  the  liquor  case — when 
suddenly,  without  any  sign  or  warning,  McTavish  gave  a  sneeze 
which,  on  my  honor,  was  scarcely  inferior  in  loudness  to  a  pistol 
shot !  The  horses  started  almost  off  the  road,  I  jumped  about 
half  a  foot  off  my  seat,  and  positively  without  exaggeration, 


52  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

Timothy  tumbled  slap  out  of  the  wagon  into  the  road,  and  lay 
there  sprawling  in  the  dust,  while  Mac  sat  perfectly  unmoved, 
without  a  smile  upon  his  face,  looking  straight  before  him,  ex- 
actly as  if  nothing  had  happened/' 

u  Nonsence,  Harry,"  exclaimed  I ;  "  that  positively  won't  go 
down." 

"  That's  an  etarnal  lie,  now,  Archer  !"  Tom  chimed  in  ;  "  least- 
wise I  don't  know  why  I  should  say  so  neither,  for  I  never  saw 
no  deviltry  goin'  on  yet,  that  didn't  come  as  nat'ral  to  McTav- 
ish,  as  lying  to  a  minister,  or" — 

"  Rum  to  Tom  Draw  !"  responded  Harry.  "  But  it's  as  true 
as  the  gospel,  ask  Timothy  there !" 

"  Nay  it's  all  true  ;  only  it's  scarce  so  bad  i'  t'  story,  as  it  was 
i'  right  airnest !  Ay  cooped  oot  o'  t'  drag — loike  ivry  thing — 
my  hinder  eend  was  sair  a  moanth  and  better  P 

"Now  then,"  said  I,  "  it's  Tom's  turn;  "let  us  hear  about 
the  bull." 

"  Oh,  the  bull !"  answered  Tom.  "  Well  you  see,  Archer 
there,  and  little  Waxskin — you  know  little  Waxskin,  I  guess, 
Mister  Forester — and  old  McTavish,  had  gone  down  to  shoot  to 
Hell-hole — where  we  was  yesterday,  you  see  ! — well  now  !  it 
was  hot — hot,  worst  kind  ;  I  tell  you — and  I  was  sort  o'  tired 
out — so  Waxskin,  in  he  goes  into  the  thick,  and  Archer  arter 
him,  and  up  the  old  crick  side — thinkin,  you  see,  that  we  was 
goin  up,  where  you  and  I  walked  yesterday — but  not  a  bit  of 
it ;  we  never  thought  of  no  such  thing,  not  we  !  We  sot  our- 
selves down  underneath  the  haystacks,  and  made  ourselves  two 
good  stiff  horns  of  toddy  ;  and  cooled  off  there,  all  in  the  shade, 
as  slick  as  silk. 

"  Well,  arter  we'd  been  there  quite  a  piece,  bang !  we  hears, 
in  the  very  thick  of  the  swamp — bang  !  bang  ! — and  then  I 
heerd  Harry  Archer  roar  out  i  mark  !  mark  ! — Tom,  mark  ! — 
you  old  fat  rascal,' — and  sure  enough,  right  where  I  should  have 
been,  if  I'd  been  a  doin  right,  out  came  two  woodcock — big  ones 
— they  looked  like  hens,  and  I  kind  o'  thought  it  was  a  shame, 
so  I  got  up  to  go  to  them,  and  called  McTavish  to  go  with  me  ; 
but  torights,  jest  as  he  was  a  gitting  up,  a  heap  of  critters  comes 
all  chasin  up,  scart  by  a  dog,  I  reckon,  kickin  their  darned  heels 
up,  and  bellowin  like  mad — and  there  was  one  young  bull 
amongst  them,  quite  a  lump  of  a  bull  now  I  tell  you  ;  and  the 
bull  he  came  up  pretty  nigh  to  us,  and  stood,  and  stawmped, 
and  sort  o'  snorted,  as  if  he  didn't  know  right  what  he  would 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  53 

be  arter,  and  McTavish,  he  gits  up,  and  turns  right  round  with 
his  back  to  the  critter  ;  he  got  a  bit  of  a  round  jacket  on,  and 
he  stoops  down  till  his  head  came  right  atween  his  legs,  kind  o' 
straddlin  like,  so  that  the  bull  could  see  nothing  of  him  but  his 
t'other  eend,  and  his  head  right  under  it,  chin  uppermost,  with 
his  big  black  whiskers,  lookin  as  fierce  as  all  h — 11,  and  fiercer  ; 
well  !  the  bull  he  stawmped  agin,  and  pawed,  and  bellowed,  and 
I  was  in  hopes,  I  swon,  that  he  would  have  hooked  him ;  but 
just  then  McTavish,  starts  to  run,  going  along  as  I  have  told 
you,  hind  eend  foremost — bo-oo  went  the  bull,  a-boo-oo,  and  off 
he  starts  like  a  stride,  with  his  tail  stret  on  eend,  and  his  eyes 
staiiu,  and  all  the  critters  arter  him,  and  then  they  kind  o'  circled 
round — and  all  stood  still  and  stared — and  stawmped,  'till  he 
got  nigh  to  them,  and  then  they  all  stricks  off  agin  ;  and  so  they 
went  on — runnin  and  then  standin  still, — and  so  they  went  on 
the  hull  of  an  hour,  I'll  be  bound  ;  and  I  lay  there  upon  my 
back  laughin  'till  I  was  stiff  and  sore  all  over  ;  and  then  came 
Waxskin  and  all  Archer,  wrathy  as  h — 11  and  sweaiin' — Lord 
how  they  did  swear ! 

"They'd  been  a  flavin  there  through  the  darned  thorns  and 
briers,  and  the  old  stinkin  mud  holes,  and  flushed  a  most  almigh- 
ty sight  of  cock,  where  the  brush  was  too  thick  to  shoot  them, 
and  every  one  they  flushed,  he  came  stret  out  into  the  open  field, 
where.  Archer  knew  we  should  have  been,  and  where  we  should 
have  killed  a  thunderin  mess,  and  no  mistake  ;  and  they  went  on 
dainmin,  and  wonderin,  and  sweatin  through  the  brush,  till  they 
got  out  to  the  far  eend,  and  there  they  had  to  make  tracks  back 
to  us  through  the  bog  meadow,  under  a  brilin  sun,  and  when 
they  did  get  back,  the  bull  was  jest  a  goin  through  the  bars — 
and  every  d — d  drop  o'  the  rum  was  drinked  up  ;  and  the  sun 
wns  settin,  and  the  day's  shootin — that  was  spoiled  ! — and  then 
McTavish  tantalized  them  the  worst  sort.  But  I  did  laugh  to 
kill ;  it  was  the  best  I  ever  did  see,  was  that  spree — Ha  !  ha  ! 
ha  !" 

And,  as  he  finished,  he  burst  out  into  his  first  horse  laugh,  in 
which  I  chorused  him  most  heartily,  having  in  truth  been  in 
convulsions,  between  the  queerness  of  his  lingo,  and  the  absurd- 
ly grotesque  attitudes  into  which  he  threw  himself,  in  imitating 
the  persons  concerning  whom  his  story  ran.  After  this,  jest 
succeeded  jest !  and  story,  story  !  'till,  in  good  truth,  the  glass 
circling  the  while  with  most  portentous  speed,  I  began  to  feel 
bees  in  my  head,  and  till  in  truth  no  one,  I  believe,  of  the  party, 


54  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

was  entirely  collected  in  his  thoughts,  except  Tom  Draw,  whom 
it  is  as  impossible  for  liquor  to  affect,  as  it  would  be  for  brandy 
to  make  a  hogshead  drunk,  and  who  stalked  oft'  to  bed  with  an 
air  of  solemn  gravity  that  would  have  well  become  a  Spanish 
grandee  of  the  olden  time,  telling  us,  as  he  left  the  room,  that 
we  were  all  as  drunk  as  thunder,  and  that  we  should  be  stinkin 
in  our  beds  till  noon  to-morrow. 

A  prediction,  by  the  way,  which  he  took  right  good  care  to 
defeat  in  his  own  person  ;  for  in  less  than  five  hours  after  we 
retired,  which  was  about  the  first  of  the  small  hours,  he  rushed 
into  my  room,  and  finding  that  the  awful  noises  which  he  made, 
had  no  effect  in  waking  me,  dragged  me  bodily  out  of  bed,  and 
clapping  xny  wet  sponge  in  my  face,  walked  off,  as  he  said,  to 
fetch  the  bitters,  which  were  to  make  me  as  fine  as  silk  upon 
the  instant. 

This  time,  I  must  confess  that  I  did  not  look  with  quite  so 
much  disgust  on  the  old  apple-jack ;  and  in  fact,  after  a  mode- 
rate horn,  I  completed  my  ablutions,  and  found  myself  perfectly 
fresh  and  ready  for  the  field.  Breakfast  was  soon  despatched, 
and  on  this  occasion  as  soon  as  we  had  got  through  the  broiled 
ham  and  eggs,  the  wagon  made  its  appearance  at  the  door. 

"  What's  this,  Harry  ?"  I  exclaimed  ;  "  where  are  we  bound 
for,  now  2" 

""Why,  Master  Frank,"  he  answered,  u  to  tell  you  tho  plain 
truth,  while  you  were  sleeping  oft*  the  effects  of  the  last  night's 
regent's  punch,  I  was  on  foot  inquiring  into  the  state  of  mat- 
ters and  things  ;  and  since  we  have  pretty  well  exhausted  our 
home  beats,  and  I  have  heard  that  some  ground,  about  ten 
miles  distant,  is  in  prime  order,  I  have  determined  to  take  a  try 
there;  but  we  must  look  pretty  lively,  for  it  is  seven  now,  and 
we  have  got  a  drive  of  ten  stifY  miles  before  us.  Now,  old 
Grampus,  are  you  ready  ?" 

"  Aye,  aye  !"  responded  Tom,  and  mounted  up,  a  work  of  no 
small  toil  for  him,  into  the  back  seat  of  the  wagon,  where  I 
soon  took  my  seat  beside  him,  with  the  two  well-broke  setters 
crouching  at  our  feet,  and  the  three  guns  strapped  neatly  to  the 
side  rails  of  the  wagons.  Harry  next  mounted  the  box.  Tim 
touched  his  hat  and  jumped  up  to  his  side,  and  off  we  rattled 
at  a  merry  trot,  wheeling  around  the  rival  tavern  which  stood 
in  close  propinquity  to  Tom's  ;  then  turning  short  again  to  the 
left  hand,  along  a  broken  stony  road,  with  several  high  and 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  55 

long  hills,  and  very  awkward  bridges  in  the  valleys,  to  the 
north-westward  of  the  village. 

Five  miles  brought  us  into  a  pretty  little  village  lying  at  the 
base  of  another  ridge  of  what  might  almost  be  denominated 
mountains,  save  that  they  were  cultivated  to  the  very  top.  As 
we  paused  on  the  brow  of  this,  another  glorious  valley  spread 
out  to  our  view,  with  the  broad  sluggish  waters  of  the  Wallkill 
winding  away,  with  hardly  any  visible  motion,  toward  the  north- 
east, through  a  vast  tract  of  meadow-land  covered  with  high, 
rank  grass,  dotted  with  clumps  of  willows  and  alder  brakes,  and 
interspersed  with  large,  deep  swamps,  thick-set  with  high  grown 
timber ;  while  far  beyond  these,  to  the  west,  lay  the  tall  varie- 
gated chain  of  the  Shawangunk  mountains. 

Rattling  briskly  down  the  hill,  we  passed  another  thriving 
village,  built  on  the  mountain  side  ;  made  two  or  three  sharp 
ugly  turns,  still  going  at  a  smashing  pace,  and  coming  on  the 
level  ground,  entered  an  extensive  cedar  swamp,  impenetrable 
above  with  the  dark  boughs  of  the  evergreen  colossi,  and  be- 
low with  half  a  dozen  varieties  of  rhododendron,  calmia,  and 
azalia.  Through  this  dark,  dreary  track,  the  road  ran  straight 
as  the  bird  flies,  supported  on  the  trunks  of  trees,  constituting 
what  is  here  called  a  corduroy  road  ;  an  article  which,  praise  be 
to  all  the  gods,  is  disappearing  now  so  rapidly,  that  this  is  the 
only  bit  to  be  found  in  the  civilized  regions  of  New  York — and 
bordered  to  the  right  and  left  by  ditches  of  black  tenacious 
mire.  Beyond  this  we  scaled  another  sandy  hillock,  and  pulled 
up  at  a  little  wayside  tavern,  at  the  door  of  which  Harry  set 
himself  lustily  to  halloa. 

"  Why,  John  ;  hilloa,  hillo  ;  John  Riker  !" 

Whereon,  out  came,  stooping  low  to  pass  under  the  lintel  of 
a  very  fair  sized  door,  one  of  the  tallest  men  I  ever  looked  upon ; 
his  height,  too,  was  exaggerated  by  the  narrowness  of  his  chest 
and  shoulders,  which  would  have  been  rather  small  for  a  man 
of  five  foot  seven  ;  but  to  make  up  for  this,  his  legs  were  mon- 
strous, his  arms  muscular,  and  his  whole  frame  evidently  power- 
ful and  athletic,  though  his  gait  was  slouching,  and  his  air  sin- 
gularly awkward  and  unhandy. 

"  Why,  how  do,  Mr.  Archer  ?  I  hadn't  heerd  you  was  in 
these  pairts — arter  woodcock,  I  reckon  ?" 

"  Yes,  John,  as  usual ;  and  you  must  go  along  with  us,  and 
show  us  the  best  ground." 

"  Well,  you  see,  I  carn't  go  to-day — for  Squire  Breawn,  and 


50  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

Dan  Faushe.%  and  a  whole  grist  of  Goshen  boys  is  comin'  over 
c>  island  horo  to  fish  ;  but  you  carn't  well  go  wrong." 

•  NVhy  not ;  are  birds  plenty!" 

"  \Yoii !  1  cuoss  thev  bo  !  Plentier  than  ever  yet  I  see  them 
hero." 

44  By  Jove !  that's  fijood  news,"  Harry  nMwered ;  "  whore 
shall  we  find  the  first  !* 

NVhv,  amost  anywheres — but  here,  jist  down  by  the  first 
bridge,  uiere's  a  hull  heap — leastwise  there  was  a  Friday — and 
then  you'd  best  go  on  to  the  second  bridge,  and  keep  the  edge 
of  the  hill  right  up  and  down  to  Merrit's  Island;  and  then 
boat  UO-NMI  lure  homo  to  the  t;.rst  hrio.^e  a^iin.  l*«t  uon'l  you 

liquor  P 

44 No,  not  this  morning,  John;  we  did  our  liquoring  last 
night  Tom,  do  you  hear"  what  John  says  I" 

44 1  hear,  I  hear/'  growled  out  old  torn ;  *  but  the  critter 
lies  like  nauthen.  He  always  does  lie,  cuss  him." 

%%  Well,  hew  goes,  and  we'll  soon  seel* 

And  away  we  went  again,  spinning  down  a  little  descent,  to 
a  flat  space  between  the  lull-foot  and  the  river,  having  a  thick 
tangled  swamp  on  the  right,  and  a  small  boggy  meadow  full  of 
grass,  breast-high,  with  a  thin  open  alder  grove  beyond  it  on 
the  left  Just  as  we  reached  the  bridge  Harry  pulled  up. 

44  Jump  out,  boys,  jump  out !    Here's  the  spot*' 

44 1  tell  you  there  aint  none ;  dam  you !  There  aint  none 
never  here,  nor  haint  been  these  six  years ;  you  know  that  now, 
yourself  Archer** 

44  We'll  try  it,  all  the  same;'  said  Harry,  who  was  coolly 
loading  his  gun.  "  The  season  has  been  wetter  than  common, 
and  this  ground  is  generally  too  dry.  Drive  on,  Tim,  over  the 
bridge,  into  the  hollow ;  you'll  be  out  of  shot  there :  and  wait 
till  we  come.  Holloa !  mark,  Tom.* 

For,  as  the  wagon  wheels  rattled  upon  the  brid$*,  up  jumped 
a  cock  ottt  of  the  ditch  by  the  road  side,  from  under  a  willow 
brush,  and  skimmed  past  all  of  us  within  five  yards.  Tom 
Dtmw  and  I,  who  had  got  out  after  Harry,  were  but  in  the  act 
of  ramming  down  our  first  barrels ;  but  Harry,  who  had  loaded 
one*  and  was  at  that  moment  rutting  down  the  wad  upon  the 
second,  dropped  his  ramrod  with  the  most  perfect  sang-troid  I 
witnessed,  took  a  cap  ont  of  his  right-hand  pocket,  applied 
and  piU^  «p  hfe  gun,  knocked  down  the  bird 


WARWICK  WOODLAHO8.  5t 

us  It  wheeled  to  cross  the  fond  behind  tts,  by  the  cleverest  shot 

"That's  pretty  well  for  no  birds,  anyhow,  Torn,"  he  ex- 
claimed, dropping  his  butt  to  load.  *'  lu>  and  gather  that  bird, 
Frank,  to  save  time ;  he  lies  in  the  wagon  rut,  there*  How 
now  I  down  charge,  you  Chase,  sir !  what  are  yon  about  !'* 

The  bird  was  quickly  bagged,  and  Harry  loaded.  ^  o 
stepped  across  a  dry  ditch,  and  both  doga  made  game  at  the 

44  Follow  the  red  dog,  Frank  !"  cried  Archer,  "  and  go  very 
slow ;  there  are  birds  here !" 

And  as  he  spoke,  while  the  dogs  were  crawling  along,  cat- 
like, pointing  at  every  step,  and  then  again  creeping  onward,  up 
d  two  birds  under  the  very  nose  of  the  white  setter,  and 
crossed  quite  to  the  left  of  Harry.  I  saw  him  raise  his  guu, 
but  that  was  all ;  for  at  the  self-same  rnonu  m  one  rose  to  me, 
and  my  ear  caught  the  flap  of  vet  another  to  my  right ;  tivo 
barrels  were  discharged  so  quickly,  that  they  made,  but  three 
reports  ;  1  out  my  bird  well  down,  and  looking  quickly  to  the 
left,  saw  nothing  but  a  stream  of  feathers  drilling  along  the 
wind.  At  •  on  the  right, 

44 1  have  killed  two,  bv  George!  What  hau  vou  done, 
boys!" 

u  Two,  I !"  said  Archer.  "  Wait,  Frank,  don't  you  begin  to 
load  till  one  of  us  is  ready  ;  there'll  be  another  .  like 

enough.    Keep  your  barrel ;  I'll  be  ready  in  a  jifty  !" 

Aud  well  it  was  that  I  obeyed  him,  for  at  the  squeak  of  the 
card,  in  its  descent  down  his  barrel,  another  bird  did  rise. 
was  making  off  for  the  open  alders,  when  my  \\  hole  charge  rid- 
died  him  ;  and  instantly  at  the  report  three,  more  flapped  up, 
and  of  course  went  off  unharmed;  but  we  marked  them,  one 
by  one,  down  in  the  grass  at  the  wood  edge.    Harry  K 
again.      Wo  set  oft*  to  piek  up  our  dead  birds.      Shot  drew,  as  I 
thought,  on  my  first,  and  pointed  dead  within  a  yard  of  where 
he  fell.     I  walked  up  carelessly,  with  my  guu  under  my  arm, 
and  was  actually  stooping  to  bag  him,  as  1  thought,  when  whiz  ! 
one  rose  almost  iu  my  face ;  and,  bothered  by  seeing  us  all 
around  him,  towered  straight  up  into  the  air.    Taken  com- 
pletely bv  surprise,  I  blazed  away  in  a  hurry,  and  missed  e 
but  not  tve  yards  did  he  go,  before  Tom  cut  him  down. 

44  Aha,  boy  !  whose  eye's  wiped  now !" 


58  WAftWlCK  WOODLANDS. 


"  Mine,  Tom,  very  fairly  ;  but  can  that  be  tlie  same  cock  I 
knocked  down,  Archer  ?" 

"  Not  a  bit  of  it  ;  I  saw  your's  fall  dead  as  a  stone  ;  he  lies 
half  a  yard  farther  in  that  tussoc." 

"  How  the  deuce  did  you  see  him  ?  Why,  you  were  shoot- 
ing  your  own  at  the  same  moment." 

"  All  knack,  Frank  ;  I  marked  both  my  own  and  yours,  and 
one  of  Tom's  besides.  Are  you  ready  ?  Hold  up,  Shot  1 
There  ;  he  has  got  your  dead  bird.  Was  I  not  right  ?  And 
look  to  !  for,  by  Jove  I  he  is  standing  on  another,  with  the  dead 
bird  in  his  mouth  1  That's  pretty,  is  it  not  ?" 

Again  two  rose,  and  both  were  killed  ;  one  by  Tom,  and  one 
by  Archer  ;  my  gun  hanging  fire. 

"That's  nine  birds  down  before  we  have  bagged  one,"  said 
Archer  ;  "  I  hope  no  more  will  rise,  or  we'll  be  losing  these." 

But  this  time  his  hopes  were  not  destined  to  meet  accom- 
plishment, for  seven  more  woodcock  got  up,  five  of  which  were 
scattered  in  the  grass  around  us,  wing-broken  or  dead,  before 
we  had  even  bagged  the  bird  which  Shot  was  gently  mouthing. 

44  1  never  saw  anything  like  this  in  my  life,  Tom.  Did  you  P' 
cried  Harry. 

"  I  never  did,  by  George  !"  responded  Tom.  "  Now  do  you 
think  there's  any  three  men  to  be  found  in  York,  such  darned 
etarnal  fools  as  to  be  willing  to  shoot  a  match  agin  us  ?" 

44  To  be  sure  I  do,  lots  of  them  ;  and  to  beat  us  too,  to  boot, 
you  stupid  old  porpoise.  Why,  there's  Harry  T  -  —  ,  and  Nick 
L  -  ,  and  a  dozen  more  of  them,  that  you  and  I  would  have 
no  more  chance  with,  than  a  gallon  of  brandy  would  have  of 
escaping  from  you  at  a  single  sitting.  But  we  have  shot 
pretty  well,  to-day.  Now  do,  for  heaven's  sake,  let  us  try  to 
bag  them  !" 

And  scattered  though  they  were  in  all  directions,  among  the 
most  infernal  tangled  grass  I  ever  stood  on,  those  excellent  dogs 
retrieved  them  one  by  one,  till  every  bird  was  pocketed.  We 
then  beat  on  and  swept  the  rest  of  the  meadow,  and  the  outer 
verge  of  the  alders,  picking  up  three  more  birds,  making  a  to- 
tal of  seventeen  brought  to  bag  in  less  than  half  an  hour.  We 
then  proceeded  to  the  wagon,  took  a  good  pull  of  water  from  a 
beautiful  clear  spring  by  the  roadside,  properly  qualified  with 
whiskey,  and  rattled  on  about  one  mile  farther  to  the  second 
bridge.  Here  we  again  got  out. 

44  Now,  Tim,"  said  Harry,  4'  mark  me  well  I     Drive  gently 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  59 

to  the  old  barrack  yonder  under  the  west-end  "of  that  wood- 
side,  unhitch  the  horses  and  tie  them  in  the  shade ;  you  can 
give  them  a  bite  of  meadow  hay  at  the  same  time ;  and  then 
get  luncheon  ready.  We  shall  be  with  you  by  two  o'clock  at 
farthest." 

"  Ay,  ay,  sur  !" 

And  off  he  drove  at  a  steady  pace,  while  we,  striking  into 
the  meadow,  to  the  left  hand  of  the  road,  went  along  getting 
sport  such  as  I  never  beheld,  or  even  dreamed  of  before.  For 
about  five  hundred  yards  in  width  from  the  stream,  the  ground 
was  soft  and  miry  to  the  depth  of  some  four  inches,  with  long 
sword-grass  quite  knee-deep,  and  at  every  fifty  yards  a  bunch 
of  willows  or  swamp  alders.  In  every  cluinp  of  bushes  we 
found  from  three  to  five  birds,  and  as  the  shooting  was  for  the 
most  part  very  open,  we  rendered  on  the  whole  a  good  account 
of  them.  The  clogs  throughout  behaved  superbly,  and  Tom 
was  altogether  frantic  with  the  excitement  of  the  sport.  The 
time  seemed  short  indeed,  and  I  could  not  for  a  moment  have 
imagined  that  it  was  even  noon,  when  we  reached  the  barrack. 

This  was  a  hut  of  rude,  unplaned  boards,  which  had  been 
put  up  formerly  with  the  intent  of  furnishing  a  permanent  abode 
for  some  laboring  men,  but  which,  having  been  long  deserted, 
was  now  used  only  as  a  temporary  shelter  by  charcoal  burners, 
hay-makers,  or  like  ourselves,  stray  sportsmen.  It  was,  how- 
ever, though  rudely  built,  and  fallen  considerably  into  decay, 
perfectly  beautiful  from  its  romantic  site ;  for  it  stood  just  at 
the  end  of  a  long  tangled  covert,  with  a  huge  pin  oak-tree,  lean- 
ing abruptly  out  from  an  almost  precipitous  bank  of  yellow  sand, 
completely  canopying  it  ;  while  from  a  crevice  in  the  sand-stone 
there  welled  out  a  little  source  of  crystal  water,  which  expanded 
into  as  sweet  a  basin  as  ever  served  a  Dryad  for  her  bath  in 
Arcady,  of  old. 

Before  it  stretched  the  wide  sweep  of  meadow  land,  with  the 
broad  blue  Wellkill  gliding  through  it,  fringed  by  a  skirt  of  cop- 
pice, and  the  high  mountains,  veiled  with  a  soft  autumnal  mist, 
sleeping  beyond,  robed  in  their  many-colored  garb  of  crimson, 
gold,  and  green.  Besides  the  spring  the  indefatigable  Tim  had 
kindled  a  bright  glancing  fire,  while  in  the  basin  were 'cooling 
two  long-necked  bottles  of  the  Baron's  best;  a  dean  white  cloth 
was  spread  in  the  shade  before  the  barrack  door,  with  plates 
mnd  cups,  and  bread  cut  duly,  and  a  travelling  case  of  cruets, 
with  all  the  other  appurtenances  needful 


60  WARWICK    WOODLAK6S, 

On  our  appearance  he  commenced  rooting  in  a  heap  of  em- 
bers, and  soon  produced  six  nondescript  looking  articles  enclosed 
— as  they  dress  maintenon  cutlets  or  red  mullet — in  double 
sheets  of  greasy  letter  paper — these  he  incontinently  dished,  and 
to  my.  huge  astonishment  they  turned  out  to  be  three  couple 
of  our  woodcock,  which  that  indefatigable  varlet  had  picked, 
and  baked  under  the  ashes,  according  to  some  strange  idea, 
whether  original,  or  borrowed  at  second  hand  from  his  master, 
I  never  was  enabled  to  ascertain. 

The  man,  be  he  whom  he  may,  who  invented  that  plat,  is 
second  neither  to  Caramel  nor  to  Ude — the  exquisite  juicy  ten- 
derness of  the  meat,  the  preservation  of  the  gravy,  the  richness 
of  the  trailr— by  heaven!  they  were  inimitable. 

In  that  sweet  spot  we  loitered  a  full  hour — then  counted  our 
bag^  which  amounted  already  to  fifty-nine  cock,  not  including 
those  with  which  Tim's  gastronomic  art  had  spread  for  us  a 
table  in  the  wilderness — then  leaving  him  to  pack  up  and  meet 
us  at  the  spot  where  we  first  started,  we  struck  down  the  stream 
homeward,  shooting  our  way  along  a  strip  of  coppice  about  ten 
yards  in  breadth,  bounded  on  one  side  by  a  dry  bare  bank  of  the 
river,  and  on  the  other  by  the  open  meadows.  We  of  course 
kept  the  verges  of  this  covert,  our  dogs  working  down  the  mid- 
dle, and  so  well  did  we  manage  it,  that  when  we  reached  the 
wagon,  just  as  the  sun  was  setting,  we  numbered  a  hundred  and 
twenty-five  birds  bagged,  besides  two  which  were  so  cut  by  the 
shot  as  to  be  useless,  six  which  we  had  devoured,  and  four  or 
five  which  we  lost  in  spite  of  the  excellence  of  our  retrievers. 
When  we  got  home  again,  although  the  Dutchman  was  on  the 
spot,  promising  us  a  quarter  race  upon  the  morrow,  and  press- 
ing earnestly  for  a  rubber  to-night,  we  were  too  much  used  up 
to  think  of  anything  but  a  good  supper  and  an  early  bed. 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 


DAY  THE  FIFTH. 

OUR  last  day's  shooting  in  the  vale  of  Sugar-loaf  was  over  ; 
and,  something  contrary  to  Harry's  first  intention,  we  had  de- 
cided, instead  of  striking  westward  into  Sullivan  or  Ulster,  to 
drive  five  miles  upon  our  homeward  route,  and  beat  the  Long- 
pond  mountain — not  now  for  such  small  game  as  woodcock, 
quail,  or  partridge ;  but  for  a  herd  of  deer,  which,  although  now 
but  rarely  found  along  the  western  hills,  was  said  to  have  been 
seen  already  several  times,  to  the  number  of  six  or  seven  head, 
in  a  small  cove,  or  hollow  basin,  close  to  the  summit  of  the 
Bellevale  ridge. 

As  it  was  not  of  course  our  plan  to  return  again  to  Tom 
Draw's,  everything  was  now  carefully  and  neatly  packed  away; 
the  game,  of  which  we  had  indeed  a  goodly  stock,  was  produced 
from  Tom's  ice-house,  where,  suspended  from  the  rafters,  it  had 
been  kept  as  sound  and  fresh  as  though  it  had  been  all  killed 
only  on  the  preceding  day. 

A  long  deep  box,  fitting  beneath  the  gun-case  under  the  front 
seat,  was  now  produced,  and  proved  to  be  another  of  Harry's 
notable  inventions;  for  it  was  lined  throughout,  lid,  bottom, 
sides  and  all,  with  zinc,  and  in  the  centre  had  a  well  or  small 
compartment  of  the  same  material,  with  a  raised  grating  in  the 
bottom.  This  well  was  forthwith  lined  with  a  square  yard,  or 
rather  more,  of  flannel,  into  which  was  heaped  a  quantity  of 
ice  pounded  as  fine  as  possible,  sufficient  to  cram  it  absolutely 
to  the  top  ;  the  rest  of  the  box  was  then  filled  with  the  birds, 
displayed  in  regular  rows,  with  heads  and  tails  alternating,  and 
a  thin  coat  of  clean  dry  wheaten  straw  between  each  layer,  until 
but  a  few  inches'  depth  remained  between  the  noble  pile  and 
the  lid  of  this  extempore  refrigerator ;  this  space  being  filled  in 
with  flannel  packed  close  and  folded  tightly,  the  box  was  lock- 
ed and  thrust  into  the  accurately  fitting  boot  by  dint  of  the 
exertion  of  Timothy's  whole  strength. 

"  There,  Frank,5'  cried  Harry,  who  had  superintended  the 
storage  of  the  whole  with  nice  scrutiny,  "  those  chaps  will  keep 
there  as  sound  as  roaches,  till  we  get  to  young  Tom's  at  Ram- 
apo  ;  you  cannot  think  what  work  I  had,  trying  in  vain  to  save 
them,  before  I  hit  upon  this  method  ;  I  tried  hops,  which  I  have 
known  in  England  to  keep  birds  in  an  extraordinary  manner — 
for,  what  you'll  scarce  believe,  I  once  ate  a  Ptarmigan,  the  day 


62  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

year  after  it  was  killed,  which  had  been  packed  with  hops,  in 
perfect  preservation,  at  Farnley,  Mr*  Fawke's  place  in  York- 
shire!— and  I  tried  prepared  charcoal,  and  got  my  woodcock 
down  to  New  York,  looking  like  chimney  sweeps,  and  smell- 
ing  -" 

"  What  the  devil  difference  does  it  make  to  you  now,  Archer, 
I'd  be  pleased  to  know  I"  interposed  Tom;  "  what  under  heaven 
they  smells  like — a  man  that  eats  cock  with  their  guts  in,  like 
you  does,  needn't  stick  now,  I  reckon,  for  a  leetle  mite  of  a 
stink !" 

" Shut  up,  you  old  villain,"  answered  Harry,  laughing,  "bring 
the  milk  punch,  and  get  your  great  coat  on,  if  you  mean  to  go 
with  us;  for  it's  quite  keen  this  morning,  I  can  tell  you;  and 
we  must  be  stirring  too,  for  the  sun  will  be  up  before  we  get  to 
Teach  man's.  Now,  Jem,  get  out  the  hounds ;  how  do  you  take 
them,  Tom  ?" 

"  Why,  that  darned  Injun,  Jem,  he'll  take  them  in  my  lumber 
wagon — and,  I  say,  Jem,  see  that  you  don't  over-drive  old 
roan — away  with  you,  and  rouse  up  Garry,  he  means  to  go,  I 
guess  !'* 

After  a  mighty  round  of  punch,  in  which,  as  we  were  now 
•departing,  one  half  at  least  of  the  village  joined,  we  all  got  un- 
der way  ;  Tom,  buttoned  up  to  the  throat  in  a  huge  white  lion 
«kin  wrap-rascal,  looking  for  all  the  world  like  a  polar  bear  erect 
•on  its  hind  legs ;  and  all  of  us  muffled  up  pretty  snugly,  a  pro- 
ceeding which  was  rendered  necessary  by  a  brisk  bracing  north- 
west breeze. 

The  sky,  though  it  was  scarcely  the  first  twilight  of  an  autum- 
nal dawn,  was  beautifully  clear,  and  as  transparent — though  still 
somewhat  dusky — as  a  wide  sheet  of  crystal ;  a  few  pale  stars 
were  twinkling  here  and  there  ;  but  in  the  east  a  broad  gray 
streak  changing  on  the  horizon's  edge  to  a  faint  straw  color, 
announced  the  sum's  approach. 

The  whole  face  of  the  country,  hill,  vale,  and  woodland,  was 
overspread  by  an  universal  coat  of  silvery  hoar-frost;  thip, 
wreaths  of  snowy  mist  rising  above  the  tops  of  the  sere  wood- 
lands, throughout  the  whole  length  ©f  the  lovely  vale,  indicated 
-as  clearly  as  though  it  were  traced  on  a  map,  the  direction  of 
the. stream  that  watered  it;  and  as  we  paused  upon  the  brow 
•of  the  first  hillock,  and  looked  back  toward  the  village,  with  its 
white  steeples  and  neat  cottage  dwellings  buried  in  the  still  re- 
pose of  that  early  hour,  with  only  one  <©r  two  faint  columns  of 


WOODLANDS,  63 

blue  smoke  worming  their  way  up  lazily  into  the  cloudless  at* 
mosphere,  a  feeling  of  regret — such  as  has  often  crossed  my 
mind  before,  when  leaving  any  place  wherein  I  have  spent  a 
few  days  happily,  and  which  I  never  may  see  more — rendered 
me  somewhat  indisposed  to  talk. 

Something  or  other — it  might  with  Harry,  perhaps,  have 
been  a  similar  train  of  thought — caused  both  my  comrades  to 
be  more  taciturn  by  far  than  was  their  wont ;  and  we  had  rat- 
tled over  five  miles  of  our  route,  and  scaled  the  first  ridge  of 
the  hills,  and  dived  into  the  wide  ravine ;  midway  the  depth 
of  this  the  pretty  village  of  Bellevale  lies  on  the  brink  of  the 
dammed  rivulet,  which,  a  few  yards  below  the  neat  stone  bridge, 
takes  a  precipitous  leap  of  fifty  feet,  over  a  rustic  wier,  and 
rushes  onward,  bounding  from  ledge  to  ledge  of  rifted  rocks, 
chafing  and  fretting  as  if  it  were  doing  a  match  against  time, 
and  were  in  danger  of  losing  its  race. 

Thus  we  had  passed  the  heavy  lumber  wagon,  with  Jem  and 
Garry  perched  on  a  board  laid  across  it,  and  the  four  couple  of 
stanch  hounds  nestling  in  the  straw  which  Tom  had  provided  in 
abundance  for  their  comfort,  before  the  silence  was  broken  by 
any  sounds  except  the  rattle  of  the  wheels,  the  occasional  ii> 
terjectional  whistle  of  Harry  to  his  horses,  or  the  flip  of  the 
well  handled  whip. 

Ju?t,  however,  as  we  were  shooting  ahead  of  the  lumber 
wain,  an  exclamation  from  Torn  Draw,  which  should  have  been 
a  sentence,  had  it  not  been  very  abruptly  terminated  in  a  long 
rattling  eructation,  arrested  Archer's  progress. 

Pulling  short  up  where  a  jog  across  the  road,  constructed — • 
after  the  damnable  mode  adopted  in  all  the  hilly  portions  of  the 
interior^^in  order  to  prevent  the  heavy  rains  from  channelling 
the  descent,  afforded  him  a  chance  of  stopping  on  the  hill,  so  as 
to  slack  his  traces.  "  How  now,"  he  exclaimed  ;  "  what  the 
deuce  ails  you  now,  you  old  rhinoceros  V 

"Oh,  Archer,  I  feels  bad;  worst  sort,  by  Judas  1  It's  that 
milk  punch,  1  reckon  ;  it  keeps  a  raising — raising,  all  the  time, 

"  And  you  want  to  lay  it,  I  suppose,  like  a  ghost,  in  a  sea 
of  whiskey  ;  well,  I've  no  especial  objection  I  Here,  Tim,  hand 
the  case  bottle,  and  the  dram  cup  !  No  1  no !  confound  you, 
pass  it  this  way  first,  for  if  Tom  once  gets  hold  of  it,  we  may 
say  good-bye  to  it  altogether.  There,"  he  continued,  after  we 
had  both  taken  a  moderate  sip  at  the  superb  old  Ferintosh) 


64  WARWICK  WOODLANDS, 

"  there,  now  take  your  chance  at  it,  and  for  Heaven's  sake  do 
leave  a  drop  for  Jem  and  Garry  ;  by  George  now,  you  shall  not 
drink  it  all  /"  as  Tom  poured  down  the  third  cup  full,  each  be- 
ing as  big  as  an  ordinary  beer-glass.  "  There  was  above  a  pint 
and  a  half  in  it  when  you  began,  and  now  there's  barely  one 
cup-full  between  the  two  of  them.  An't  you  ashamed  of  your- 
self now,  you  greedy  old  devil  ?" 

"  It  doos  go  right,  I  swon  1"  was  the  only  reply  that  could 
be  got  out  of  him. 

"  That's  more  a  plaguy  sight  than  the  bullets  will  do,  out  of 
your  old  tower  musket;  you're  so  drunk  now,  I  fancy,  that 
you  could'nt  hold  it  straight  enough  to  hit  a  deer  at  three  rods, 
let  alone  thirty,  which  you  are  so  fond  of  chattering  about." 

"  Do  tell  now,"  replied  Tom,  "  did  you,  or  any  other  feller, 
ever  see  me  shoot  the  worser  for  a  mite  of  liquor,  and  as  for 
deer,  that's  all  a  no  sich  thing ;  there  arnt  no  deer  a  this  side 
of  Duck-seedar's.  It's  all  a  lie  of  Teach  man's  and  that  Deck- 
ering  son  of  a  gun." 

"  Holloa  !  hold  up,  Tom- — recollect  yesterday  ! — -I  thought 
there  had  been  no  cock  down  by  the  first  bridge  there,  these 
six  years  ;  why  you're  getting  quite  stupid,  and  a  croaker  too, 
in  your  old  age." 

"  Mayhap  I  be,''  he  answered  rather  gruffly  ;  "  mayhap  I  be, 
but  you  won't  git  no  deer  to-day,  I'll  stand  drinks  for  the  com- 
pany;  and  if  we  doos  start  one,  I'll  lay  on  my  own  musket  agin 
your  rifle." 

Well !  we'll  soon  see,  for  here  we  are,"  Harry  replied,  as  af- 
ter leaving  the  high-road  just  at  the  summit  of  the  Bellevale 
mountain,  he  rattled  down  a  very  broken  rutty  bye-road  at 
the  rate  of  at  least  eight  miles  an  hour,  vastly  to  the  discomfit- 
ure of  our  fat  host,  whose  fleshy  sides  were  jolted  almost  out 
of  their  skin  by  the  concussion  of  the  wheels  against  the  many 
stones  and  jogs  which  opposed  their  progress. 

"Here  we  are,  or  at  least  soon  will  be.  It  is  but  a  short  half 
mile  through  these  woods  to  Teach  man's  cottage.  Is  there  a 
gun  loaded,  Tim  ?  It's  ten  to  one  we  shall  have  a  partridge 
fluttering  up  and  treeing  here  directly  ;  I'll  let  the  dogs  out — 
get  away,  Flash  !  get  away,  Dan  !  you  little  rascals.  Jump  out, 
good  dogs,  Shot,  Chase — hie  up  with  you  !''  and  out  they  went 
rattling  and  scrambling  through  the  brush-wood  all  four 
abreast ! 

At  the  same  moment  Tim,  leaning  over  into  the  body  of  the 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  65 

wagon,  lugged  out  a  brace  of  guns  from  their  leathern  cases ; 
Harry's  short  ounce  ball  rifle,  and  the  long  single  barrelled 
duck  gun. 

*'  'T  roifle  is  loaden  wi'  a  single  ball,  and  't  single  goan  wi'  yan 
of  them  green  cartridges !" 

"  Much  good  ball  and  buck-shot  will  do  us  against  partridge; 
nevertheless,  if  one  trees,  Fll  try  if  I  can't  cut  his  head  off  for 
him,"  said  Archer,  laughing. 

"  Nay  !  nay  !  it  be-ant  book-shot ;  it's  BO  but  noomber  three  ; 
tak'  haud  on't,  Measter  Draa,  tak'  haud  on't.  It's  no  hoort  thee? 
mon,  and  't  horses  boath  stand  foire  cannily  !" 

Scarce  had  Fat  Tom  obeyed  his  imperative  solicitations,  and 
scarce  had  Tim  taken  hold  of  the  ribbands  which  Harry  relin- 
quished the  moment  he  got  the  rifle  into  his  hands,  before  a 
most  extraordinary  hubbub  arose  in  the  little  skirt  of  coppice 
to  our  left ;  the  spaniels  quested  for  a  second's  space  at  the  ut- 
most, when  a  tremendous  crash  of  the  branches  arose,  and  both 
the  setters  gave  tongue  furiously  with  a  quick  savage  yell. 

The  road  at  this  point  of  the  wood  made  a  short  and  very 
sudden  angle,  so  as  to  enclose  a  small  point  of  extremely  dense 
thicket  between  its  two  branches ;  on  one  of  these  was  our 
wagon,  and  down  the  other  the  lumber-wain  was  rumbling,  at 
the  moment  when  this  strange  and  most  unexpected  outcry 
started  us  all. 

u  What  in  t'  fient's  neam  is  yon  ?"  cried  Timothy. 

"  And  what  the  devil's  that  ?"  responded  I  and  Archer  in  a 
breath. 

But  whatever  it  was  that  had  aroused  the  dogs  to  such  a 
most  unusual  pitch  of  fury,  it  went  crashing  through  the  brush- 
wood for  some  five  or  six  strokes  at  a  fearful  rate  toward  the 
other  wagon;  before,  however  it  had  reached  the  road,  a  most 
appalling  shout  from  Jem,  followed  upon  the  instant  by  the 
blended  voices  of  all  the  hounds  opening  at  once,  as  on  a  view, 
excited  us  yet  farther  ! 

I  was  still  tugging  at  my  double  gun,  in  the  vain  hope  of 
getting  it  out  time  enough  for  action.  Tom  had  scrambled  out 
of  the  wagon  on  the  first  alarm,  and  stood  eye,  ear,  and  heart 
erect,  by  the  off  side  of  the  horses,  which  were  very  restless, 
pawing,  and  plunging  violently,  and  almost  defying  Timothy's 
best  skill  to  hold  them  ;  while  Harry,  having  cast  oft*  his  box- 
coat,  stood  firm  and  upright  on  the  foot  board  as  a  carved  statue, 
with  his  rifle  cocked  and  ready ;  when,  headed  back  upon  us 


66  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

by  tne  yell  of  Lyn  and  the  loud  clamor  of  his  fresh  foes,  the 
first  buck  I  had  seen  in  America,  and  the  largest  I  had  seen 
any  where,  clashed  at  a  single  plunge  into  the  round,  clearing 
the  green  head  of  a  fallen  hemlock,  apparently  without  an 
effort,  his  splendid  antlers  laid  back  on  his  neck,  and  his  white 
flag  lushing  his  fair  round  haunch  as  the  fleet  bitches  Bonny 
Belle  and  Blossom  yelled  with  their  shrill  fierce  trebles  close 
behind  him. 

Seeing  that  it  was  useless  to  persist  in  my  endeavor  to  extri- 
cate my  gun,  and  satisfied  that  the  matter  was  in  good  hands, 
I  was  content  to  look  on,  an  inactive  but  most  eager  witness. 

Tom,  who  from  his  position  at  the  head  of  the  off  horse, 
commanded  the  first  view  of  the  splendid  creature,  pitched  his 
gun  to  his  shoulder  hastily  and  fired  ;  the  smoke  drifted  across 
my  face,  but  through  its  vapory  folds  I  could  distinguish  the 
dim  figure  of  the  noble  hart  still  bounding  unhurt  onward  ; 
but,  before  the  first  echo  of  the  round  ringing  report  of  Tom's 
shot-gun  reached  my  ear,  the  sharp  flat  crack  of  Harry's  rifle 
followed  it,  and  at  the  self-same  instant  the  buck  sprang  six 
feet  into  the  air,  and  pitched  head  foremost  on  the  ground ;  it 
was  but  for  a  moment,  however,  for  with  the  speed  of  light  he 
struggled  to  his  feet,  and  though  sore  wounded,  was  yet  toiling 
onward  when  the  two  English  foxhounds  dashed  at  his  throat 
and  pulled  him  down  again. 

"  Eun  in,  Tom,  run  in  !  quick,"  shouted  Harry,  "  he's  not 
clean  killed,  and  may  gore  the  dogs  sadly  !" 

"  I've  got  no  knife,"  responded  Tom,  but  dauntlessly  he 
dashed  in,  all  the  same,  to  the  rescue  of  the  bitches — which  I 
believe  he  loved  almost  as  well  as  his  own  children — and  though, 
encumbered  by  his  ponderous  white  top-coat,  not  to  say  by  his 
two  hundred  and  fifty  weight  of  solid  flesh,  seized  the  fierce 
animal  by  the  brow-antlers,  and  bore  him  to  the  ground,  before 
Harry,  who  had  leaped  out  of  the  wagon,  with  his  first  words, 
could  reach  him. 

The  next  moment  the  keen  short  hunting  knife,  without 
which  Archer  never  takes  the  field,  had  severed  at  a  single 
stroke  the  weasand  of  the  gallant  brute ;  the  black  blood 
streamed  out  on  the  smoking  hoar-frost,  the  full  eyes  glazed, 
and,  after  one  sharp  fluttering  struggle,  the  life  departed  from 
those  graceful  limbs,  which  had  been  but  a  few  short  instants 
previous  so  full  of  glorious  energy — of  fiery  vigor. 

"  Well,  that's  the  strangest  thing  I  ever   heard  of,  let  alone 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  67 

seeing,"  exclaimed  Archer,  "fancy  a  buck  like  that  lying  in 
such  a  mere  fringe  of  coppice,  and  so  near  to  the  road-side, 
too  !  and  why  the  deuce  did  he  lay  here  till  we  almost  passed 
him  !" 

u  I  know  how  it's  been,  any  heaw,''  said  Jem,  who  had  by 
this  time  come  up,  and  was  looking  on  with  much  exultation 
flashing  in  his  keen  small  eye.  "Bill  Speer  up  on  the  hill  there 
telled  me  jist  now,  that  they  druv  a  big  deer  down  from  the 
back-bone  clear  down  to  this  here  hollow  just  above,  last  night 
arter  dark.  Bill  shot  at  him,  and  kind  o'  reckoned  he  hot  him — 
but  I  guess  he's  mistaken — leastwise  he  jumped  strong  enough 
jist  neaw  ! — but  which  on  you  was  't  'at  killed  him  P 

"I  did,"  exclaimed  Torn,   "I  did  by !" 

"  Why  you  most  impudent  of  all  old  liars,"  replied  Harry — 
while  at  the  same  time,  with  a  most  prodigious  chuckle,  Tim 
Matlock  pointed  to  the  white  bark  of  a  birch  sapling,  about 
the  thickness  of  a  man's  thigh,  standing  at  somewhat  less  than 
fifteen  paces'  distance,  wherein  the  large  shot  contained  by  the 
wire  cartridge — the  best  sporting  invention  by  the  way,  that 
has  been  made  since  percussion  caps — had  bedded  themselves 
in  a  black  circle,  cut  an  inch  at  least  into  the  solid  wood,  and 
about  two  inches  in  diameter  ! 

"  I  ken  gay  and  fairly,"  exclaimed  Tim,  '"at  Ay  rammed  an 
Eley's  patent  cartridge  into 't  single  goon  this  morning;  and 
yonder  is  't  i'  t'  birk  tree,  and  Ay  ken  a  load  o'  shot  fra  an  unce 
bullet  !" 

The  laugh  was  general  now  against  fat  Tom  ;  especially  as 
the  small  Avound  made  by  the  heavy  ball  of  Harry's  rifle  was 
plainly  visible,  about  a  hand's  breadth  behind  the  heart,  on  the 
side  toward  which  he  had  aimed;  while  the  lead  had  passed 
directly  through,  in  an  oblique  direction  forward,  breaking  the 
left  shoulder  blade,  and  lodging  just  beneath  the  skin,  whence 
a  touch  of  the  knife  dislodged  it. 

"  What  now — what  now,  boys  ?"  cried  the  old  sinner,  no 
whit  disconcerted  by  the  general  mirth  against  him.  "  I  say, 
by  gin  !  I  killed  him,  and  I  say  so  yet.  Which  on  ye  all — 
which  on  ye  all  daared  to  go  in  on  him,  wishout  a  knife  nor 
nothen.  I  killed  him,  I  say,  anyhow,  and  so  let's  drink  !" 

."Well,  I  believe  we  must  wet  him,"  Harry  answered,  "so 
get  out  another  flask  of  whiskey,  Tim  ;  and  you  Jem  and  Gar- 
ry lend  me  a  hand  to  lift  this  tine  chap  into  the  wagon.  By 
Jove!  but  this  will  make  the  Teachmans  open  their  eyes  ;  and 


68  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

now  look  sharp !  You  sent  the  Teachmans  word  that  we  were 
coming,  Tom  ?'' 

"  Sartin  !  and  they've  got  breakfast  ready  long  enough  before 
this,  anyways." 

With  no  more  of  delay,  but  with  lots  more  of  merriment 
and  shouting,  on  we  drove ;  and  in  five  minutes'  space,  just  as 
the  sun  was  rising,  reached  the  small  rude  enclosure  around  two 
or  three  log  huts,  lying  just  on  the  verge  of  the  beautiful  clear 
lake.  Two  long  sharp  boats,  and  a  canoe  scooped  out  of  a 
whole  tree,  were  drawn  up  on  the  sandy  beach  ;  a  fishing  net 
of  many  yards  in  length  was  drying  on  the  rails  ;  a  brace  of 
large,  strong,  black  and  tan  foxhounds  were  lying  on  the  step 
before  the  door  ;  a  dozen  mongrel  geese,  with  one  wing-tipped 
wild  one  among  them,  were  sauntering  and  gabbling  about  the 
narrow  yard  ;  and  a  glorious  white-headed  fishing  eagle,  with  a 
clipped  wing,  but  otherwise  at  large,  was  perched  upon  the 
roof  hard  by  the  chimney. 

At  the  rattle  of  our  arrival,  out  came  from  the  larger  of  the 
cottages,  three  tall  rough-looking  countrymen  to  greet  us,  not 
one  of  whom  stood  less  than  six  foot  in  his  stockings,  while 
two  were  several  inches  taller. 

Great  was  their  wonder,  and  loud  were  their  congratutations 
when  they  beheld  the  unexpected  prize  which  we  had  gained, 
while  on  our  route  ;  but  little  space  was  given  at  that  time  to 
either ;  for  the  coffee,  which,  by  the  way,  was  poor  enough, 
and  the  hot  cakes  and  fried  perch,  which  were  capital,  and  the 
grilled  salt  pork,  swimming  in  fat,  and  the  large  mealy  potatoes 
bursting  through  their  brown  skins,  were  ready  smoking  upon 
a  rough  wooden  board,  covered,  however,  by. a  clean  white  ta- 
ble cloth,  beside  a  sparkling  fire  of  wood,  which  our  drive 
through  the  brisk  mountain  air  had  rendered  by  no  means  un- 
acceptable. 

We  breakfasted  like  hungry  men  and  hunters,  both  rapidly 
and  well ;  and  before  half  an  hour  elapsed,  Archer,  with  Jem 
and  one  of  our  bold  hosts,  started  away,  well  provided  with 
powder  and  ball,  and  whiskey,  and  accompanied  by  all  the 
hounds,  to  make  a  circuit  of  the  western  hill,  on  the  summit  of 
which  they  expected  to  be  joined  by  two  or  three  more  of  the 
neighbors,  whence  they  proposed  to  drive  the  whole  sweep  of 
the  forest-clad  descent  down  to  the  water's  edge. 

Tim  was  enjoined  to  see  to  the  provisions,  and  to  provide- as 
good  a  dinner  as  his  best  gastronomic  skill  and  the  contents  of 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  69 

our  portable  larder  might  afford,  and  I  was  put  under  the 
charge  of  Tom,  who  seemed,  for  about  an  hour,,  disposed  to  do 
nothing  but  to  lie  dozing,  with  a  cigar  in  his  mouth,  stretched 
upon  the  broad  of  his  back,  on  a  bank  facing  the  early  sunshine 
just  without  the  door  ;  while  our  hosts  were  collecting  bait, 
preparing  fishing  tackle,  and  cleaning  or  repairing  their  huge 
clumsy  muskets.  At  length,  when  the  drivers  had  been  gone 
already  for  considerably  more  than  an  hour,  he  got  up  and 
shook  himself. 

"  Now,  then,  boys,"  he  exclaimed,  "  we'll  be  a  movin.  You 
Joe  Teach  man,  what  are  you  lazin  there  about,  cuss  you  ?  You 
go  with  Mr.  Forester  and  Garry  in  the  big  boat,  and  pull  as 
fast  as  you  can  put  your  oars  to  water,  till  you  git  opposite  the 
white-stone  pint — and  there  lie  still  as  fishes  !  You  may  fish, 
though,  if  you  will,  Forester,"  he  added,  turning  to  me,  "  and 
I  do  reckon  the  big  yellow  pearch  will  bite  the  darndest,  this 
cold  morning,  arter  the  sun  gits  fairly  up — but  soon  as  ever  you 
hear  the  hounds  holler,  or  one  of  them  chaps  shoot,  then  look 
you  out  right  stret  away  for  business  !  Gale,  here,  and  I'll  take 
the  small  boat,  and  keep  in  sight  of  you  ;  and  so  we  can  kiver 
all  this  eend  of  the  pond  like,  if  the  deer  tries  to  cross  herea- 
ways.  How  long  is't,  Gale,  since  we  had  six  on  them  all  at  once 
in  the  water — six — seven — eight !  well,  I  swon,  it's  ten  years 
agone  now  !  But  come,  we  mus'nt  stand  here  talkin,  else  we'll 
get  a  dammin  when  they  drives  down  a  buck  into  the  pond, 
and  none  of  us  in  there  to  tackle  with  him !'' 

So  without  more  ado,  we  got  into  our  boats,  disposed  our 
guns,  with  the  stocks  towards  us  in  the  bows,  laid  in  our  stock 
of  tinder,  pipes,  and  liquor,  and  rowed  off  merrily  to  our  ap- 
pointed stations. 

Never,  in  the  whole  course  of  my  life,  has  it  been  my  for- 
tune to  look  upon  more  lovely  scenery  than  I  beheld  that  morn- 
ing. The  long  narrow  winding  lake,  lying  as  pure  as  crystal 
beneath  the  liquid  skies,  reflecting,  with  the  correctness  of  the 
most  perfect  mirror,  the  abrupt  and  broken  hills,  which  sank 
down  so  precipitously  into  ifc — clad  as  they  were  in  foliage  of 
every  gorgeous  dye,  with  which  the  autumn  of  America  loves 
to  enhance  the  beatuy  of  her  forest  pictures — that,  could  they 
find  their  way  into  its  mountain-girdled  basin,  ships  of  large 
burthen  might  lie  afloat  within  a  stone's  throw  of  the  shore — 
the  slopes  of  the  wood-covered  knolls,  here  brown,  or  golden, 
and  interspersed  with  the  rich  crimson  of  the  faded  maples, 


70 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 


there  verdant  with  the  evergreen  leaves  of  the  pine  and  cedar — 
and  the  far  azure  summits  of  the  most  distant  peaks,  all  steeped 
in  the  serene  and  glowing  sunshine  of  an  October  morning. 

For  hours  we  lay  there,  our  little  vessel  floating  as  the 
occasional  breath  of  a  sudden  breeze,  curling  the  lake  into 
sparkling  waveKts,  cho:>e  to  direct  our  course,  smoking  our 
Cigars,  and  chatting  cozily,  and  now  and  then  pulling  up  a  great 
broad-backed  yellow  bass,  whose  flapping  would  for  a  time 
disturb  the  peaceful  silence,  which  reigned  over  wood,  and  dale, 
and  water,  quite  unbroken  save  by  the  chance  c'amor  of  a 
passing  crow  :  yet  not  a  sound  betokening  the  approach  of  our 
drivers  had  reached  our  ears. 

Suddenly,  when  the  sun  had  long  passed  his  meridian  height, 
and  was  declining  rapidly  toward  the  horizon,  the  full  round 
shot  of  a  musket  rang  from  the  mountain  top,  followed  imme- 
diately by  a  sharp  yell,  and  in  an  instant  the  wiu,le  basin  of  the 
lake  was  tilled  with  the  harmonious  discord  of  the  hounds. 

I  could  distinguish  on  the  moment  the  clear  sharp  challenge 
of  Harry's  high-bred  foxhounds,  the  deep  bass  voices  of  the 
Southern  dogs,  and  the  untamable  and  cur-like  yelping  of  the 
dogs  which  the  Teach  mans  had  taken  with  them. 

Ten  minutes  passed  full  of  anxiety,  almost  of  fear. 

We  knew  not  as  yet  whither  to  turn  our  boats'  head,  for 
every  second  the  course  of  the  hounds  seemed  to  vary,  at  one 
instant  they  would  appear  to  be  rushing  directly  down  to  us, 
and  the  next  instant  they  would  turn  as  though  they  were 
going  up  the  hill  again.  Meantime  our  beat  rs  were  not  idle — 
their  stirring  shouts,  serving  alike  to  animate  the  hounds,  and 
to  force  the  deer  to  water,  made  rock  and  wood  reply  in  cheery 
echoes;  but,  to  my  wonder,  I  caught  not  for  a  long  time  one 
note  of  Harry's  gladsome  voice. 

At  length,  as  I  strained  my  eyes  against  the  broad  hill-side, 
gilt  by  the  rays  of  the  declining  sun,  J  caught  a  glimpse  of  his 
form  running  at  a  tremendous  pace,  bounding  over  stock  and 
stone,  and  plunging  through  dense  thickets,  on  a  portion  of  the 
declivity  where  the  tall  trees  had  a  few  years  before  been 
destroyed  by  accidental  fire. 

At  this  moment  the  hounds  were  running,  to  judge  from 
their  tongues,  parallel  to  the  lake  and  to  the  line  which  he  was 
running — the  next  minute,  with  a  redoubled  clamor,  they  turned 
directly  down  to  him.  I  lost  sight  of  him.  But  half  a  minute 
afterward,  the  sharp  crack  of  his  rifle  again  rang  upon  the  air, 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  71 

followed  by  a  triumphant  "  Whoop  !  who-whoop  !"  and  then,  I 
knew,  another  stag  had  fallen. 

The  beaters  on  the  bill  shouted  again  louder  and  louder  than 
before — and  the  hounds  still  raved  on.  By  heaven  !  but  there 
must  be  a  herd  of  them  a-foot !  And  now  the  pack  divides  !  The 
English  hounds  are  bringing  their  game  down — here — by  the 
Lord  !  just  here — right  in  our  very  faces !  The  Southrons  have 
borne  away  over  the  shoulder  of  the  bill,  still  running  hot  and 
hard  in  Jolly  Tom's  direction. 

"  By  heaven  !"  1  cried, i4  look,  Teachman  1  Garry,  look  !  There! 
See  you  not  that  noble  buck  ? — he  leaped  that  sumach  bush  like 
a  race-horse  !  and  see  !  see  !  now  he  will  take  the  water.  Bad 
luck  on  it !  he  sees  us,  and  heads  back  !" 

Again  the  fleet  hounds  rally  in  his  rear,  and  chide  till  earth 
and  air  are  vocal  and  harmonious.  Hark  I  hark!  how  Archer's 
cheers  ring.on  the  wind  !  Now  he  turns  once  again — he  nears 
the  edge — how  glorious  !  with  what  a  beautiful  bold  bound  he 
leaped  from  that  high  bluff  into  the  flashing  wave  !  with  what 
a  majesty  he  tossed  his  antlered  head  above  the  spray  !  with 
how  magnificent  and  brave  a  stroke  he  breasts  the  curling 

billows  r 

"  Give  way  !  my  men,  give  way  !" 

How  the  frail  bark  creaks  and  groans  as  we  ply  the  long  oars 
in  the  rullocks — how  the  ash  bends  in  our  sturdy  grasp — how 
the  boat  springs  beneath  their  impulse. 

"Together,  boys  !  together  !  now — now  we  gain — now,  Garry, 
lay  your  oar  aside — up  with  your  musket — now  you  are  near 
enough — give  it  to  him,  in  heaven's  name !  a  good  shot,  too! 
the  bullet  ricochetted  from  the  lake  scarcely  six  inches  from  bis 
nose  !  Give  way  again — it  's  my  shot  now  !'T 

And  lifting  my  Joe  Manton,  each  barrel  loaded  with  a  bullet 
carefully  wadded  with  greased  buckskin,  I  took  a  careful  aim 
arid  fired. 

"That's  it,"  cried  Garry;  "  well  done,  Forester — right  through 
the  head,  by  George  !" 

And,  as  lie  spoke,  I  fancied  for  a  moment  he  Xvas  right. 
The  noble  buck  plunged  half  his  height  out  of  the  bright  blue 
water,  shaking  his  head  as  if  in  the  death  agony,  but  the  next 
instant  he  stretched  out  again  with  vigor  unimpaired,  and  I 

could  see  that  mv  ball   had  only  knocked  a  tine  off  his  left 

i  * 

antler. 

My  second  barrel  still   remained,  and  without  lowering  the 


72  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

gun,  I  drew  my  second  trigger.  Again  a  fierce  plunge  told 
that  the  ball  had  not  erred  widely ;  and  this  time,  when  he 
again  sank  into  his  wonted  posture,  the  deep  crimson  dye  that 
tinged  the  foam  which  curled  about  his  graceful  neck,  as  he 
still  struggled,  feebly  fleet,  before  his  unrelenting  foes,  gave 
token  of  a  deadly  wound. 

Six  more  strokes  of  the  bending  oars — we  shot  alongside — a 
noose  of  rope  was  cast  across  his  branching  tines,  the  keen  knife 
flashed  across  his  throat,  and  all  was  over  !  We  towed  him  to 
the  shore,  where  Harry  and  his  comrades  were  awaiting  us  with 
another  victim  to  his  unerring  aim.  We  took  both  bucks  and 
all  hands  on  board,  pulled  stoutly  homeward,  and  found  Tom 
lamenting. 

Two  deer,  a  buck  of  the  first  head,  and  a  doe,  had  taken  water 
close  beside  him  —  he  had  missed  his  first  shot,  and  in  toiling 
over-hard  to  recover  lost  ground,  had  broken  his  oar,  and  been 
compelled  inactively  to  witness  their  escape. 

Three  fat  bucks  made  the  total  of  the  day's  sport — not  one  of 
which  had  fallen  to  Tom's  boasted  musket. 

It  needed  all  that  Tim's  best  dinner,  with  lots  of  champagne 
and  Ferintosh,  could  do  to  restore  the  fat  chap's  equanimity ; 
but  he  at  last  consoled  himself,  as  we  threw  ourselves  on  the 
lowly  beds  of  the  log  hut,  by  swearing  that  by  the  etarnal  devil 
he'd  beat  us  both  at  partridges  to-morrow. 


DAY  THE  SIXTH. 

THE  sun  rose  broad  and  bright  in  a  firmament  of  that  most 
brilliant  and  transparent  blue,  which  I  have  witnessed  in  no 
other  country  than  America,  so  pure,  so  cloudless,  so  immeasur- 
ably distant  as  it  seems  from  the  beholder's  eye !  There  was  not 
a  speck  of  cloud  from  east  to  west,  from  zenith  to  horizon ;  not 
a  fleece  of  vapor  on  the  mountain  sides  ;  not  a  breath  of  air  to 
ruffle  .the  calm  basin  of  the  Greenwood  lake. 

The  rock-crowned,  forest-mantled  ridge,  on  the  farther  side  of 
the  narrow  sheet,  was  visible  almost  as  distinctly  through  the 
medium  of  the  pure  fresh  atmosphere,  as  though  it  had  been 
gazed  at  through  a  telescope  —  the  hues  of  the  innumerable 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 


maples,  in  their  various  stages  of  decay,  purple,  and  crimson,  and 
bright  gorgeous  scarlet,  were  contrasted  with  the  rich  chrome 
yellow  of  the  birch  and  poplars,  the  sere  red  leaves  of  the  gi- 
gantic oaks,  and  with  the  ever  verdant  plumage  of  the  junipers, 
clustered  in  massy  patches  on  every  rocky  promontory,  and  the 
tail  spires  of  the  dark  pines  and  hemlock. 

Over  this  mass  of  many-colored  foliage,  the  pale  thin  yellow 
light  of  the  new-risen  sun  was  pouring  down  a  flood  of  chaste 
illumination  ;  while,  exhaled  from  the  waters  by  his  first  beams, 
a  silvery  gauze-like  haze  floated  along  the  shores,  not  rising  to 
the  height  of  ten  feet  from  the  limped  surface,  which  lay  unbro- 
ken by  the  smallest  ripple,  undisturbed  by  the  slightest  splash 
of  fish  or  insect,  as  still  and  tranquil  to  the  eye  as  though  it 
had  been  one  huge  plate  of  beaten  burnished  silver  ;  with  the 
tall  cones  of  the  gorgeous  hills  in  all  their  rich  variety,  in  all 
their  clear  minuteness,  reflected,  summit  downward,  palpable  as 
their  reality,  in  that  most  perfect  mirror. 

Such  was  the  scene  on  which  I  gazed,  as  on  the  last  day  of 
our  sojourn  in  the  Woodlands  of  fair  Orange,  I  issued  from  the 
little  cabin,  under  the  roof  of  which  I  had  slept  so  dreamlessly 
and  deep,  after  the  fierce  excitement  of  our  deer  hunt,  that  while 
I  was  yet  slumbering,  all  save  myself  had  risen,  donned  their 
accoutrements,  and  sallied  forth,  I  knew  not  whither,  leaving  me 
certainly  alone,  although  as  certainly  not  so  much  to  my  glory. 

From  the  other  cottage,  as  I  stood  upon  the  threshold,  I 
might  hear  the  voices  of  the  females,  busy  at  their  culinary 
labors,  the  speedily  approaching  term  of  which  was  obviously 
denoted  by  the  rich  savory  steams  which  tainted  —  not,  I  con- 
fess, unpleasantly  —  the  fragrant  morning  air. 

As  I  looked  out  upon  this  lovely  morning,  I  did  not,  I  acknow- 
ledge it,  regret  the  absence  of  my  excellent  though  boisterous  com- 
panions ;  for  there  was  something  which  I  cannot  define  in  the 
deep  stillness,  in  the  sweet  harmonious  quiet  of  the  whole  scene 
before  me,  that  disposed  my  spirit  to  meditation  far  more  than  to 
mirth  ;  the  very  smoke  which  rose  from  the  low  chimneys  of  the 
Teachmans'  colony  —  not  surging  to  and  fro,  obedient  to  the  fickle 
winds  —  but  soaring  straight,  tall,  unbroken,  upward,  like  Corin- 
thian columns,  each  with  its  curled  capital  —  seemed  to  invite  the 
soul  of  the  spectator  to  mount  with  it  toward  the  sunny  heavens. 

By-and-bye  I  strayed  downward  to  the  beach,  a  narrow  strip 
of  silvery  sand  and  variegated  pebbles,  and  stood  there  long,  si- 
Jently  watching  the  unknown  sports,  the  seemingly  —  to  us  at 
4 


74  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

least — unmeaning  movements,  and  strange  groupings  of  the 
small  fry,  which  darted  to  and  fro  in  the  clear  shallows  within 
two  yards  of  my  feet;  or  marking  the  brief  circling  ripples, 
wrought  by  the  morning  swallow's  wing,  and  momently  subsi- 
ding into  the  wonted  rest  of  the  calm  lake. 

How  long  I  stood  there  musing  I  know  not,  for  I  had  fallen 
into  a  train  of  thought  so  deep  that  I  was  utterly  unconscious 
of  everything  around  me,  when  I  was  suddenly  aroused  from 
my  reverie  by  the  quick  dash  of  oars,  and  by  a  volley  of  some 
seven  barrels  discharged  in  quick  succession.  As  I  looked  up 
with  an  air,  I  presume  somewhat  bewildered,  I  heard  the  loud 
and  bellowing  laugh  of  Tom,  and  saw  the  whole  of  our  stout 
company  gliding  up  in  two  boats,  the  skiff  and  the  canoe,  to- 
ward the  landing  place,  perhaps  a  hundred  yards  from  the  spot 
where  I  stood. 

"  Come  here,  darn  you,"  were,  the  first  words  I  heard,  from 
the  mouth  of  what  speaker  it  need  not  be  said — "  come  here, 
you  lazy,  snortin,  snoozin  Decker — lend  a  hand  here  right  stret 
away,  will  you?  We've  got  more  perch  than  all  of  us  can 
carry — and  Archer's  got  six  wood-duck." 

Hurrying  down  in  obedience  to  this  unceremonious  mandate, 
I  perceived  that  indeed  their  time  had  not  been  misemployed, 
for  the  whole  bottom  of  the  larger  boat  was  heaped  with  fish — 
the  small  and  delicate  green  perch,  the  cat-fish,  hideous  in  its 
natural,  but  most  delicious  in  its  artificial  shape,  and,  above  all, 
the  large  and  broad-backed  yellow  bass,  from  two  to  four  pounds 
weight.  While  Archer,  who  had  gone  forth  with  Garry  only  in 
the  canoe,  had  picked  up  half  a  dozen  wood-duck,  two  or  three 
of  the  large  yellow-legs,  a  little  bittern,  known  by  a  far  less  ele- 
gant appellative  throughout  the  country,  and  thirteen  English 
snipe. 

"  By  Jove  !"  cried  I,  "  but  this  is  something  like — where  the 
deuce  did  you  pick  the  snipe  up,  Harry — and,  above  all,  why 
the  deuce  did  you  let  me  lie  wallowing  in  bed  this  lovely  morn- 
ing?" 

"One  question  at  a  time,"  responded  he,  "good  Master  Frank ; 
one  question  at  a  time.  For  the  snipe,  I  found  them  very  un- 
expectedly, I  tell  you,  in  a  bit  of  marshy  meadow  just  at  the 
outlet  of  the  pond.  Garry  was  paddling  me  along  at  the  top 
of  his  pace,  after  a  wing:tipped  wood-duck,  when  up  jumped 
one  of  the  long-billed  rascals,  and  had  the  impudence  to  skim 
across  the  creek  under  my  very  nose — '  skeap  !  skeap  !'  Well, 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  7"5 

I  dropped  him,  you  may  be  sure,  with  a  charge,  too,  of  duck 
shot ;  and  he  fell  some  ten  yards  over  on  the  meadow ;  so  leav- 
ing Garry  to  pursue  the  drake,  I  landed,  loaded  my  gun  with 
No.  9,  and  went  to  work — the  result  as  you  see ;  but  I  cleared 
the  meadow — devil  a  bird  is  left  there,  except  one  I  cut  to 
pieces,  and  could  not  find  for  want  of  Chase — two  went  away 
without  a  shot,  over  the  hills  and  far  away.  As  for  letting  you 
lie  in  bed,  you  must  talk  to  Tom  about  it ;  I  bid  him  call  you, 
and  the  fat  rascal  never  did  so,  and  never  said  a  word  about 
you,  till  we  were  ready  for  a  start,  and  then  no  Master  Frank 
was  to  the  fore." 

"  Well,  Tom,"  cried  I,  "  what  have  you  got  to  say  to  this  ?" 

•'  Now,  cuss  you,  don't  come  foolin'  about  me,"  replied  that 
worthy,  aiming  a  blow  at  me,  which,  had  it  taken  place,  might 
well  have  felled  Goliah  ;  but  which,  as  I  sprang  aside,  wasting 
its  energies  on  the  impassive  air,  had  well  nigh  floored  the 
striker.  "  Don't  you  come  foolin'  about  me — you  knows  right 
well  I  called  you,  and  you  knows,  too,  you  almost  cried,  and 
told  me  to  clear  out,  and  let  you  git  an  hour's  sleep ;  for  by  the 
Lord  you  thought  Archer  and  I  was  made  of  steel ! — you 
couldn't  and  you  wouldn't — and  now  you  wants  to  know  the 
reason  why  you  warn't  along  with  us  !'' 

"  Never  mind  the  old  thief,  Frank,"  said  Archer,  seeing  that 
I  was  on  the  point  of  answering,  "  even  his  own  aunt  says  he 
is  the  most  notorious  liar  in  all  Orange  county — and  Heaven 
forbid  we  should  gainsay  that  most  respectable  old  lady !" 

Into  what  violent  asseveration  our  host  would  have  plunged 
at  this  declaration,  remains,  like  the  tale  of  Cambuscan  bold, 
veiled  in  deep  mystery  ;  for  as  he  started  from  the  log  on  which 
he  had  been  reposing  while  in  the  act  of  unsplicing  his  bam- 
boo fishing  pole,  the  elder  of  the  Teachmans  thrust  his  head 
out  of  the  cabin  nearest  to  us — "  Come,  boys,  to  breakfast !" — 
and  at  the  first  word  of  his  welcome  voice,  Tom  made,  as  he 
would  have  himself  defined  it,  stret  tracks  for  the  table.  And 
a  mighty  different  table  it  was  from  that  to  which  we  had  sat 
down  on  the  preceding  morning.  Timothy — unscared  by  the 
wonder  of  the  mountain  nymphs,  who  deemed  a  being  of  the 
masculine  gender  as  an  intruder,  scarce  to  be  tolerated,  on  the 
mysteries  of  the  culinary  art — had  exerted  his  whole  skill,  and 
brought  forth  all  the  contents  of  his  canteen  !  We  had  a  su- 
perb steak  of  the  fattest  venison,  graced  by  cranberries  stewed 
with  cayenne  pepper,  and  sliced  lemons.  A  pot  of  excellent 


Y6  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

black  tea,  almost  as  strong  as  the  cognac  which  flanked  it ;  a 
dish  of  beautiful  fried  perch,  with  cream  as  thick  as  porridge, 
our  own  loaf  sugar,  and  Teach  man's  new  laid  eggs,  hot  wheaten 
cakes,  and  hissing  rashers  of  right  tender  pork,  furnished  a 
breakfast  forth  that  might  have  vied  successfully  with  those 
which  called  forth,  in  the  Hebrides,  such  raptures  from  the  lexi- 
cographer. 

Breakfast  despatched — for  which,  to  say  the  truth,  Harry 
gave  us  but  little  time — we  mustered  our  array  and  started  ; 
Harry  and  Tom  and  I  making  one  party,  with  the  spaniels — 
Garry,  the  Teachmans,  and  Timothy,  with  the  setters,  which 
would  hunt  very  willingly  for  him  in  Archer's  absence,  forming 
a  second.  It  was  scarce  eight  o'clock  when  we  went  out,  each 
on  a  separate  beat,  having  arranged  our  routes  so  as  to  meet  at 
one  o'clock  in  the  great  swamp,  said  to  abound,  beyond  all 
other  places,  in  the  ruffed  grouse  or  partridge,  to  the  pursuit  of 
which  especially  we  had  devoted  our  last  day. 

"Now,  Frank,"  said  Harry,  "you  have  done  right  well 
throughout  the  week;  and  if  you  can  stand  this  day's  tramp,  I 
will  say  for  you  that  you  are  a  sportsman,  aye,  every  inch  of 

Vone.  We  have  got  seven  miles  right  hard  walking  over  the 
roughest  hills  you  ever  saw — the  hardest  moors  of  Yorkshire 
are  nothing  to  them — before  we  reach  the  swamp,  and  that 
you'll  find  a  settler  !  Tom,  here,  will  keep  along  the  bottoms, 
workings  his  way  as  best  he  can ;  while  we  make  good  the  up- 
lands !  Are  your  flasks  full  ?" 

"  Sartain,  they  are  !"  cried  Tom — u  and  I've  got  a  rousin  big- 
black  bottle,  too — but  not  a  drop  of  the  old  cider  sperrits  do 
you  git  this  day,  boys ;  not  if  your  thirsty  throats  were  crack- 
ing for  it !'' 

"  Well,  well  !  we  won't  bother  you — you'll  need  it  all,  old 
porpoise,  before  you  get  to  the  far  end.  Here,  take  a  hard 
boiled  egg  or  two,  Frank,  and  some  salt,  and  I'll  pocket  a  few 
biscuits — we  must  depend  on  ourselves  to-day." 

"Ay,  ay,  Sur,"  chuckled  Timothy,  "there's  naw  Tim  Mat- 
lock  to  mak  looncheon  ready  for  ye  'a  the  day.  See  thee, 
measter  Frank.  Ay'se  gotten  't  measter's  single  barrel ;  and 
gin  I  dunna  ootshoot  measter  Draa — whoy  Ay'se  deny  my 
coon  try !" 

"  Most  certainly  you  will  deny  it  then,  Tim,"  answered  I, 
"  for  Mr.  Draw  shoots  excellently  well,  and  you " 

"And  Ay'se  shot  mony  a  hare  by  't  braw  moon,  doon  i' 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  77 

bonny  Ca  woods.  Ay'se  beat,  Ay'se  oophaud*  it !"  So  saying, 
he  shouldered  the  long  single  barrel,  and  paddled  off  with  the 
most  extraordinary  expedition  after  the  Teachmans,  who  had 
already  started,  leading  the  setters  in  a  leash,  till  they  were  out 
of  sight  of  Archer. 

"  They  have  the  longest  way  to  go,"  said  Harry,  "  by  a  mile 
at  the  least ;  so  we  have  time  for  a  cheroot  before  we  three  get 
under  way." 

Cigars  were  instantly  produced  and  lighted,  and  we  lounged 
about  the  little  court  for  the  best  part  of  half  an  hour,  till  the 
report  of  a  distant  gunshot,  ringing  with  almost  innumerable 
reverberations  along  the  woodland  shores,  announced  to  us  that 
our  companions  had  already  got  into  their  work. 

"  Here  goes,"  oiecl  Harry,  springing  to  his  feet  at  once,  and 
grasping  his  good  gun  ;  "  here  goes — they  have  got  into  the 
long  hollow,  Tom,  and  by  the  time  we've  crossed  the  ridge, 
and  got  upon  our  ground,  they'll  be  abreast  of  us.'' 

"Hold  on  !  hold  on  !''  Tom  bellowed,  "you  are  the  darndest 
critter,  when  you  do  git  goin — now  hold  on,  do — I  wants  some 
rum,  and  Forester  here  looks  a  kind  of  white  about  the  gills, 
his  what-d'ye-call,  cheeroot,  has  made  him  sick,  I  reckon  !" 

Of  course,  with  such  an  exhortation  in  our  ears  as  this,  it 
was  impossible  to  do  otherwise  than  wet  our  whistles  with  one 
drop  of  the  old  Ferintosh  ;  and  then,  Tom  having  once  again 
recovered  his  good  humor,  away  we  went,  and  "  clombe  the 
high  hill/'  though  we  "swam  not  the  deep  river,"  as  merrily  as 
ever  sportsman  did,  from  the  days  of  Arbalast  and  Longbow, 
down  to  those  times  of  Westley  Richards'  caps  and  Eley's  wire 
cartridges. 

A  tramp  of  fifteen  minutes  through  some  scrubby  brushwood, 
brought  us  to  the  base  of  a  steep  stony  ridge  covered  with  tall 
and  thrifty  hickories  and  a  few  oaks  and  maples  intermixed, 
rising  so  steeply  from  the  shore  that  it  was  necessary  not  only 
to  strain  every  nerve  of  the  leg,  but  to  swing  our  bodies  up 
from  tree  to  tree,  by  dint  of  hand.  It  was  indeed  a  hard  and 
heavy  tug ;  and  I  had  pretty  tough  work,  what  between  the 
exertion  of  the  ascent,  and  the  incessant  fits  of  laughter  into 
which  I  was  thrown  by  the  grotesquely  agile  movements  of  fat 
Tom  ;  who,  grunting,  panting,  sputtering,  and  launching  forth 
from  time  to  time  the  strangest  and  most  blasphemously  horrid 

*  Oophaud,  Yorkshire.    Anglice,  uphold 


78  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

oaths,  contrived  to  make  way  to  the  summit  faster  than  either 
of  us — crashing  through  the  dense  underwood  of  juniper  and 
sumach,  uprooting  the  oak  saplings  as  he  swung  from  this  to 
that,  and  spurning  down  huge  stones  upon  us,  as  we  followed 
at  a  cautious  distance.  When  we  at  last  crowned  the  ridge,  we 
found  him,  just  as  Harry  had  predicted,  stretched  in  a  half- 
recumbent  attitude,  leaning  against  a  huge  gray  stone,  with  his 
fur  cap  and  double-barrel  lying  upon  the  withered  leaves  beside 
him,  puffing,  as  Archer  told  him,  to  his  mighty  indignation, 
like  a  great  grampus  in  shoal  water. 

After  a  little  rest,  however,  FalstafF  revived,  though  not  before 
he  had  imbibed  about  a  pint  of  applejack,  an  occupation  in 
which  he  could  not  persuade  either  of  us,  this  time,  to  join  him. 
Descending  from  our  elevated  perch,  we  now  got  into  a  deep 
glen,  with  a  small  brooklet  winding  along  the  bottom,  bordered 
on  either  hand  by  a  stripe  of  marshy  bog  earth,  bearing  a  low 
growth  of  alder  bushes,  mixed  with  stunted  willows.  On  the 
side  opposite  to  that  by  which  we  had  descended,  the  hill  rose 
long  and  lofty,  covered  with  mighty  timber-trees  standing  in 
open  ranks  and  overshadowing  a  rugged  and  unequal  surface, 
covered  with  whortleberry,  wintergreen,  and  cranberries,  the 
latter  growing  only  along  the  courses  of  the  little  runnels,  which 
channelled  the  whole  slope.  Here,  stony  ledges  and  gray 
broken  crags  peered  through  the  underwood,  among  the  crevices 
of  which  the  stunted  cedars  stood  thick  set,  and  matted  with  a 
thousand  creeping  vines  and  brambles ;  while  there,  from  some 
small  marshy  basin,  the  giant  Rhododendron  Maximum  rose 
almost  to  the  height  of  a  timber  tree. 

"  Here,  Tom,"  said  Harry,  "  keep  you  along  this  run — you'll 
have  a  woodcock  every  here  and  there,  and  look  sharp  when 
you  hear  them  fire  over  the  ridge,  for  they  can't  shoot  to  speak 
of,  and  the  ruffed  grouse  will  cross — you  know.  You,  master 
Frank,  stretch  your  long  legs  and  get  three  parts  of  the  way 
up  this  hill: — over  the  second  mound — there,  do  you  see  that 
great  blue  stone  with  a  thunder-splintered  tree  beside  it?  just 
beyond  that !  then  turn  due  west,  and  mark  the  trending  of  the 
valley,  keeping  a  little  way  ahead  of  me,  which  you  will  find 
quite  easy,  for  I  shall  have  to  beat  across  you  both.  Go  very 
slow,  Tom — now,  hurrah  !" 

Exhorted  thus,  I  bounded  up  the  hill  and  soon  reached  my 
appointed  station ;  but  not  before  I  heard  the  cheery  voice  of 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  79 

Archer  encouraging  the  eager  spaniels — "  Hie  cock  !  hie  cock ! 
pu-r-r-h !" — till  the  woods  rang  to  the  clear  shout. 

Scarce  had  I  reached  the  top,  before,  as  I  looked  down  into 
the  glen  below  me,  a  puff  of  white  smoke,  instantly  succeeded 
by  a  second,  and  the  loud  full  reports  of  both  his  barrels  from 
among  the  green-leafed  alders,  showed  me  that  Tom  had  sprung 
game.  The  next  second  I  heard  the  sharp  questing  of  the 
spaniel  Dan,  followed  by  Harry's  "  Charge  ! — down  Cha-arge, 
you  little  thief — down  to  cha-arge,  will  you  !" 

But  it  was  all  in  vain — for  on  he  went  furious  and  fast,  and 
the  next  moment  the  thick  whirring  of  a  grouse  reached  my 
excited  ears.  Carefully,  eagerly,  I  gazed  out  to  mark  the  wary 
bird ;  but  the  discharge  of  Harry's  piece  assured  me,  as  I 
thought,  that  further  watch  was  needless ;  and  stupidly  enough 
I  dropped  the  muzzle  of  my  gun. 

Just  at  the  self-same  point  of  time — "  Mark !  mark,  Frank  !" 
shouted  Archer,  "  mark  !  there  are  a  brace  of  them  !" — and  as 
he  spoke,  gliding  with  speed  scarcely  inferior  to  a  bullet's  flight 
upon  their  balanced  pinions,  the  noble  birds  swept  past  me,  so 
close  that  I  could  have  struck  them  with  a  riding  whip. 

Awfully  fluttered  was  I — I  confess — but  by  a  species  of  in- 
voluntary and  instinctive  consideration  I  rallied  instantly,  and 
became  cool.  The  grouse  had  seen  me,  and  wheeled  diverse ; 
one  darting  to  the  right,  through  a  small  opening  between  a 
cedar  bush  and  a  tali  hemlock — the  other  skimming  through 
the  open  oak  woods  a  little  toward  the  left. 

At  such  a  crisis  thought  comes  in  a  second's  space ;  and  I 
have  often  fancied  that  in  times  of  emergency  or  great  surprise, 
a  man  deliberates  more  promptly,  and  more  prudently  withal, 
than  when  he  has  full  time  to  let  his  second  thought  trench  on 
his  first  and  mar  it.  So  was  it  in  this  case  with  me.  At  half  a 
glance  I  saw,  that  if  I  meant  to  get  both  birds,  the  right-hand 
fugitive  must  be  the  first,  and  that  with  all  due  speed ;  for  but 
a  few  yards  further  he  would  have  gained  a  brake  which  would 
have  laughed  to  scorn  Lord  Kennedy  or  Harry  T r. 

Pitching  my  gun  up  to  my  shoulder,  both  barrels  loaded 
with  Eley's  red  wire  cartridge  No.  6,  I  gave  him  a  snap  shot, 
and  had*  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  him  keeled  well  over,  not 
wing-tipped  or  leg-broken,  but  fairly  riddled  by  the  concentrated 
charge  of  something  within  thirty  yards.  Turning  as  quick  as 
light,  I  caught  a  fleet  sight  of  the  other,  which  by  a  rapid 
zig-zag  was  now  flying  full  across  my  front,  certainly  over 


80  WARWICK    WOODLANDS, 

forty-five  yards  distant,  among  a  growth  of  thick-set  saplings — 
the  hardest  shot,  in  my  opinion,  that  can  be  selected  to  test  a 
quick  and  steady  sportsman.  I  gave  it  him,  and  down  he  came 
too — killed  dead — that  I  knew,  for  I  had  shot  full  half  a  yard 
before  him.  Just  as  I  dropped  my  butt  to  load,  the  hill  began 
to  echo  with  the  vociferous  yells  of  master  Dan,  the  quick 
redoubled  cracks  of  Harry's  heavy  dog-whip,  and  his  incessant 
rating — "  Down,  cha-arge  !  For  sha-ame  !  Dan  !  Dan  !  down 
cha-arge !  for  sha-ame !" — broken  at  times  by  the  impatient 
oaths  of  Tom  Draw,  in  the  gulley,  who  had,  it  seems,  knocked 
down  two  woodcock,  neither  of  which  he  could  bag,  owing  to 
the  depth  and  instability  of  the  wet  bog. 

"  Quit !  quit !  cuss  you,  quit  there,  leatherin  that  brute  ! 
Quit,  I  say,  or  I'll  send  a  shot  at  you !  Gome  here,  Archer — I 
say,  come  here ! — there  be  the  darndest  lot  of  droppins  here,  I 
ever  see — full  twenty  cock,  I  swon  !" 

But  still  the  scourge  continued  to  resound,  and  still  the 
raving  of  the  spaniel  excited  Tom's  hot  ire. 

"  Frank  Forester  !"  exclaimed  he  once  again.  "  Do  see  now 
— Harry  missed  them  partridge,  and  so  he  licks  the  poor  dumb 
brute  for  it.  I  wish  I  were  a  spannel,  and  he'd  try  it  on  with 
me !" 

"  I  will,  too/'  answered  Archer,  with  a  laugh  ;  "  I  will,  too, 
if  you  wish  it,  though  you  are  not  a  spaniel,  nor  any  thing  else 
half  so  good.  And  why,  pray,  should  I  not  scourge  this  wild 
little  imp  ?  he  ran  slap  into  the  best  pack  of  ruffed  grouse  I 
have  seen  this  two  years — fifteen  or  sixteen  birds^  I  wonder 
they're  not  scattered — it's  full  late  to  find  them  packed  1" 

"  Did  you  kill  ere  a  one  ?"  Tom  holloaed ;  "  not  one,  either 
of  you !" 

"  I  did,"  answered  Harry,  "  I  nailed  the  old  cock  bird,  and  a 
rare  dog  he  is  ! — two  pounds,  good  weight,  I  warrant  him/'  he 
added,  weighing  him  as  he  spoke.  "  Look  at  the  crimson  round 
his  eye,  Frank,  like  a  cock  pheasant's,  and  his  black  ruff  or 
tippet — by  George!  but  he's  a  beauty!  And  what  did  you 
do  ?"  he  continued. 

"  I  bagged  a  brace — the  only  two  that  crossed  me." 

"  Did  you,  though  ?"  exclaimed  Archer,  with  no  small  expres- 
sion of  surprise ;  "  did  you,  though  ? — that's  prime  work — it 
takes  a  thorough  workman  to  bag  a  double  shot  upon  October 
grouse.  But  come,  we  must  go  down  to  Tom  ;  hark  how  the 
old  hound  keeps  bawling." 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  81 

Well,  down  we  went.  The  spaniels  quickly  retrieved  his 
dead  birds,  and  flushed  some  fifteen  more,  of  which  we  gave  a 
clean  account — Harry  making  up  for  lost  time  by  killing  six 
cock,  right  and  left,  almost  before  they  topped  the  bushes — 
seven  more  fell  to  me,  but  single  birds  all  of  them — and  but 
one  brace  to  Tom,  who  now  began  to  wax  indignant;  for  Archer, 
as  I  saw,  for  fun's  sake,  was  making  it  a  point  to  cut  down  every 
bird  that  rose  to  him,  before  he  could  get  up  his  gun ;  and  then 
laughed  at  him  for  being  fat  and  slow.  But  the  laugh  was  on 
Tom's  side  before  long — for  while  we  were  yet  in  the  valley,  the 
report  of  a  gun  came  faintly  down  the  wind  from  beyond  the 
hill,  and  as  we  all  looked  out  attentively,  a  grouse  skimmed 
the  brow,  flying  before  the  wind  at  a  tremendous  pace,  and 
skated  across  the  valley  without  stooping  from  his  altitude.  I 
stood  the  first,  and  fired,  a  yard  at  least  ahead  of  him — on  he 
went,  unharmed  and  undaunted ;  bang  went  my  second  barrel 
— still  on  he  went,  the  faster,  as  it  seemed,  for  the  weak  insult. 

Harry  came  next,  and  he  too  fired  twice,  and — tell  it  not  in 
Gath — missed  twice  !  "  Now,  Fat-Guts  !"  shouted  Archer,  not 
altogether  in  his  most  amiable  or  pleasing  tones ;  and  sure 
enough  up  went  the  old  man's  piece — roundly  it  echoed  with 
its  mighty  charge — a  cloud  of  feathers  drifted  away  in  a  long 
line  from  the  slaughtered  victim — which  fell  not  direct,  so  rapid 
was  its  previous  flight,  but  darted  onward  in  a  long  declining 
tangent,  and  struck  the  rocky  soil  with  a  thud  clearly  audible 
where  we  stood,  full  a  hundred  yards  from  the  spot  where  it 
fell. 

He  bagged,  amid  Tom's  mighty  exultation,  forward  again  we 
went  and  in  a  short  half  hour  got  into  the  remainder  of  the 
pack  which  we  had  flushed  before,  in  some  low  tangled  thorn 
cover,  among  which  they  lay  well,  and  we  made  havoc  of  them. 
And  here  the  oddest  accident  I  ever  witnessed  in  the  field  took 
place — so  odd,  that  I.  am  half  ashamed  to  write  to  it — but 
where's  the  odds,  for  it  is  true. 

A  fine  cock  bird  was  flushed  close  at  Tom's  feet,  and  went 
off  to  the  left,  Harry  and  I  both  standing  to  the  right ;  he  blazed 
away,  and  at  the  shot  the  bird  sprung  up  six  or  eight  feet  into 
the  air,  with  a  sharp  staggering  flutter.  "  Killed  dead  !''  cried 
I;  "  well  done  again,  Fat  Tom."  But  to  my  great  surprise  the 
grouse  gathered  wing,  and  flew  on,  feebly  at  first,  and  dizzily, 
but  gaining  strength  more  and  more  as  he  went  on  the  farther. 
At  the  last,  after  a  long  flight,  he  treed  in  a  tall  leaflless  pine. 


82  WARWICK   WOODLANDS* 

"  Run  after  him,  Frank,"  Archer  called  to  me,  "  you  are  the 
lightest ;  and  we'll  beat  up  the  swale  till  you  return.  You  saw 
the  tree  he  took  ?" 

"Aye,  aye  I"  said  I  preparing  to  make  off. 

"  Well !  he  sits  near  the  top — now  mind  me  !  no  chivalry, 
Frank !  give  him  no  second  chance — a  ruffed  grouse,  darting 
downward  from  a  tall  pine  tree,  is  a  shot  to  balk  the  devil — it's 
full  five  to  one  that  you  shoot  over  and  behind  him — give  him 
no  mercy !" 

Off  I  went,  and  after  a  brisk  trot,  five  or  six  minutes  long, 
reached  my  tree,  saw  my  bird  perched  on  a  broken  limb  close 
to  the  time-blanched  trunk,  cocked  my  Joe  Manton,  and  was  in 
the  very  act  of  taking  aim,  when  something  so  peculiar  in  the 
motion  of  the  bird  attracted  me,  that  I  paused.  He  was  nodding 
like  a  sleepy  man,  and  seemed  with  difficulty  to  retain  his  foot- 
hold. While  I  was  gazing,  he  let  go,  pitched  headlong,  fluttered 
his  wings  in  the  death-struggle,  yet  in  air,  and  struck  the  ground 
close  at  my  feet,  stone-dead.  Tom's  first  shot  had  cut  off  the 
whole  crown  of  the  head,  with  half  the  brain  and  the  right 
eye ;  and  after  that  the  bird  had  power  to  fly  five  or  six  hun- 
dred yards,  and  then  to  cling  upon  its  perch  for  at  least  ten 
minutes. 

Rejoining  my  companions,  we  again  went  onward,  slaying 
and  bagging  as  we  went,  till  when  the  sun  was  at  meridian  we 
sat  down  beside  the  brook  to  make  our  frugal  meal — not  to-day 
of  grilled  woodcock  and  champagne,  but  of  hard  eggs,  salt, 
biscuit,  and  Scotch  whiskey — not  so  bad  either — nor  were  we 
disinclined  to  profit  by  it.  We  were  still  smoking  on  the  marge, 
when  a  shot  right  ahead  told  us  that  our  out-skirting  party  was 
at  hand. 

All  in  an  instant  were  on  the  alert ;  in  twenty  minutes  we 
joined  forces,  and  compared  results.  We  had  twelve  grouse, 
five  rabbits,  seventeen  woodcock ;  they,  six  gray  squirrels, 
seven  grouse,  and  one  solitary  cock — Tim,  proud  as  Lucifer  at 
having  led  the  field.  But  his  joy  now  was  at  an  end — for  to 
his  charge  the  setters  were  committed  to  be  led  in  leash,  while 
we  shot  on,  over  the  spaniels.  Another  dozen  grouse,  and 
eighteen  rabbits,  completed  our  last  bag  in  the  Woodlands. 

Late  was  it  when  we  reached  the  Teachmans'  hut — and  long 
and  deep  was  the  carouse  that  followed  ;  and  when  the  moon 
had  sunk  and  we  were  turning  in,  Tom  Draw  swore  with  a 
mighty  oath  of  deepest  emphasis — that  since  we  had  passed  a 


TTARWICK    WOODLANDS.  83 

week  with  him,  he'd  take  a  seat  down  in  the  wagon,  and  see 
the  Beacon  Races.  So  we  filled  round  once  more,  and  clinked 
our  glasses  to  bind  the  joyous  contract,  and  turned  in  happy. 


DAY  THE  SEVENTH. 

ONCE  more  we  were  compelled  to  change  our  purpose. 

When  we  left  Tom  Draw's,  it  had  been,  as  we  thought,  final- 
ly decided  that  we  were  for  this  bout  to  visit  that  fair  village  no 
more,  but  when  that  worthy  announced  his  own  determination 
to  accompany  us  on  our  homeward  route,  and  when  we  had 
taken  into  consideration  the  fact,  that,  independent  of  Tom's 
two  hundred  and  fifty  weight  of  solid  flesh,  we  had  two  noble 
bucks,  beside  quail,  ruffed  grouse,  woodcock,  and  rabbit  almost 
innumerable  to  transport,  in  addition  to  our  two  selves  and 
Timothy,  with  the  four  dogs,  and  lots  of  luggage — when  we,  I 
say,  considered  all  this,  it  became  apparent  that  another  rehicle 
must  be  provided  for  our  return.  So  during  the  last  jorum,  it 
had  been  put  to  the  vote  and  unanimously  carried  that  we 
should  start  for  Tom's,  by  a  retrograde  movement,  at  four 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  breakfast  with  him,  and  rig  up  some 
drag  or  other  wherein -Timothy  might  get  the  two  deer  and  the 
dogs,  as  best  he  might,  into  the  city. 

"  As  for  us,"  said  Harry,  "  we  will  go  down  the  other  road, 
Tom,  over  the  back-bone  of  the  mountain,  dine  with  old  Colonel 
Beams,  stop  at  Paterson,  and  take  a  taste  at  the  Holy  Father's 
poteen — you  may  look  at  the  Falls  if  you  like  it,  Frank,  while 
we're  looking  at  the  Innishowen — and  so  get  home  to  supper. 
1*11  give  you  both  beds  for  one  night — but  not  an  hour  longer — 
my  little  cellar  would  be  broken,  past  all  doubt,  if  old  Tom 
were  to  get  two  nights  out  of  it !" 

"  Ay'se  sure  it  would,"  responded  Timothy,  who  had  been 
listening,  all  attention,  mixing  meanwhile  some  strange  com- 
pound of  eggs  and  rum  and  sugar.  "  Whoy,  measter  Draa  did 
pratty  nigh  drink  't  out  yance — that  noight  'at  eight  chaps, 
measter  Frank,  drank  oop  two  baskets  o'  champagne,  and  fifteen 
bottles  o7  't  breawn  sherry — Ay  carried  six  on  'em  to  bed,  Ay'se 
warrant  it — and  yan  o'  them,  young  measter  Clark,  he  spoilt 
me  a  new  suit  o'  liveries,  wi'  vomiting  a  top  cm  me." 


84  WARWICK    WOODLANDS, 

"  That'll  do,  Timothy,"  interposed  Archer,  unwilling,  as  I 
thought,  that  the  secret  mysteries  of  his  establishment  should 
be  revealed  any  further  to  the  profane  ears  which  were  gaping 
round  about  us — "  that'll  do  for  the  present — give  Mr.  Draw 
that  flip — he's  looking  at  it  very  angrily,  I  see  !  and  then  turn 
in,  or  you'll  be  late  in  the  morning ;  and,  by  George,  we  must 
be  away  by  four  o'clock  at  latest,  for  we  have  all  of  sixty  miles 
to  make  to-morrow,  and  Tom's  fat  carcase  will  try  the  springs 
most  consumedly,  down  hill." 

Matters  thus  settled,  in  we  turned,  and — as  it  seemed  to  me, 
within  five  minutes,  I  was  awakened  by  Harry  Archer,  who 
stood  beside  my  bed  full  dressed,  with  a  candle  in  his  hand. 

"  Get  up,"  he  whispered,  u  get  up,  Frank,  very  quietly ;  slip 
on  your  great-coat  and  your  slippers — we  have  a  chance  to  serve 
Tom  out — he's  not  awake  for  once  !  and  Timothy  will  have  the 
horses  ready  in  five  minutes  !" 

Up  I  jumped  on  the  instant,  hauled  on  a  rough-frieze  pea- 
jacket,  thrust  my  unstockinged  feet  into  their  contrary  slippers, 
and  followed  Harry,  on  the  tips  of  my  toes,  along  a  creaking 
passage,  guided  by  the  portentous  ruckling  snorts,  which  varied 
the  profundity  of  the  fat  man's  slumbers.  When  I  reached  his 
door,  there  stood  Harry,  laughing  to  himself,  with  a  small  quiet 
chuckle,  perfectly  inaudible  at  three  feet  distance,  the  intensity 
of  which  could,  however,  be  judged  by  the  manner  in  which  it 
shook  his  whole  person.  Two  huge  horse-buckets,  filled  to  the 
brim,  were  set  beside  him  ;  and  he  had  cut  a  piece  of  an  old 
broomstick  so  as  to  fit  exactly  to  the  width  of  the  passage, 
across  which  he  had  fastened  it,  at  about  two  feet  from  the 
ground,  so  that  it  must  most  indubitably  trip  up  any  person, 
who  should  attempt  to  run  along  that  dark  and  narrow  thor- 
oughfare. 

"  Now,  Frank,"  said  he,  "  see  here  !  I'll  set  this  bucket  here 
behind  the  door — we'll  heave  the  other  slap  into  his  face — there 
he  lies,  full  on  the  broad  of  his  fat  back,  with  his  mouth  wide 
open — and  when  he  jumps  up  full  of  fight,  which  he  is  sure  to 
do,  run  you  with  the  candle,  whfch  blow  out  the  moment  .he 
appears,  straight  down  the  passage.  I'll  stand  back  here,  and 
as  he  trips  over  that  broomstick,  which  he  is  certain  to  do,  I'll 
pitch  the  other  bucket  on  his  back — and  if  he  does  not  think 
he's  bewitched,  I'll  promise  not  to  laugh.  I  owe  him  two  or 
three  practical  jokes,  and  now  I've  got  a  chance,  so  I'll  pay  him 
all  at  once." 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  85 

Well  !  we  peeped  in,  aided  by  the  glare  of  the  streaming  tal- 
low candle,  and  there,  sure  enough,  with  all  the  clothes  kicked 
otF  him,  and  his  immense  rotundity  protected  only  from  the 
cold  by  an  exceeding  scanty  shirt  of  most  ancient  cotton,  lay 
Tom,  flat  on  his  back,  like  a  stranded  porpoise,  with  his  mouth 
wide  open,  through  which  he  was  puffing  and  breathing  like  a 
broken-winded  cab-horse,  while  through  his  expanded  nostrils 
he  was  snoring  loudly  enough  to  have  awaked  the  seven  sleep- 
ers. Neither  of  us  could  well  stand  up  for  laughing.  One 
bucket  was  deposited  behind  the  door,  and  back  stood  Harry 
ready  to  slip  behind  it  also  at  half  a  moment's  warning — the 
candlestick  was  placed  upon  the  floor,  which  I  was  to  kick  over 
in  my  flight. 

"  Stand  by  to  heave  !"  whispered  my  trusty  comrade — 
"  heave  !"  and  with  the  word — flash  ! — slush  ! — out  went  the 
whole  contents  of  the  full  pail,  two  gallons  at  the  least  of  ice- 
cold  water,  slap  in  the  chaps,  neck,  breast,  and  stomach  of  the 
sound  sleeper.  With  the  most  wondrous  noise  that  ears  of 
mine  have  ever  witnessed — a  mixture  of  sob,  snort,  and  groan, 
concluding  in  the  longest  and  most  portentous  howl  that  mouth 
of  man  ever  uttered — Tom  started  out  of  bed  ;  but,  at  the 
very  instant  I  discharged  my  bucket,  I  put  my  foot  upon  the 
light,  flung  down  the  empty  pail,  and  bolted.  Poor  devil ! — as 
he  got  upon  his  feet  the  bucket  rolled  up  with  its  iron  handles 
full  against  his  shins,  the  oath  he  swore  at  which  encounter, 
while  he  dashed  headlong  after  me,  directed  by  the  noise  I  made 
on  purpose,  is  most  unmentionable.  Well  knowing  where  it 
was,  I  easily  jumped  over  the  stick  which  barred  the  passage. 
Not  so  Tom — for  going  at  the  very  top  of  his  pace,  swearing 
like  forty  troopers  all  the  time,  he  caught  it  with  both  legs  just 
below  the  knees,  and  went  down  with  a  squelch  that  shook  the 
whole  hut  to  the  rooftree,  while  at  the  self-same  instant  Harry 
once  again  soused  him  with  the  contents  of  the  second  pail, 
and  made  his  escape  unobserved  by  the  window  of  Tom's  own 
chamber.  Meanwhile  I  had  reached  my  room,  and  flinging  off  my 
jacket,  carne  running  out  with  nothing  but  my  shirt  and  a  light- 
ed candle,  to  Tom's  assistance,  in  which  the  next  moment  I  was 
joined  by  Harry,  who  rushed  in  from  out  of  doors  with  the  sta- 
ble lanthorn. 

"  What's  the  row  now  ?"  he  said,  with  his  face  admirably 
cool  and  quiet.  "  What  the  devil's  in  the  wind  ?" 

"  Oh  !  Archer  !"  grunted  poor  Tom,  in  most  piteous  accents — 


86  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

"  them  darned  etarnal  Teachmans — they've  murdered  me  right 
out !  I'll  never  get  over  this — ugh  !  ugh  !  ugh  !  Half  drowned 
and  smashed  up  the  darndest !  Now  aint  it  an  etarnal  shame  ! 
Cuss  them,  if  I  doos  n't  sarve  them  out  for  it,  my  name's  not 
Thomas  Draw  !" 

"  Well,  it  is  not,"  rejoined  Harry,  "  who  in  the  name  of  won- 
der ever  called  you  Thomas  ?  Christened  you  never  were  at 
all,  that's  evident  enough,  you  barbarous  old  heathen — but  you 
were  certainly  named  Tom." 

Swearing,  and  vowing  vengeance  on  Jem  Lyn,  and  Garry, 
and  the  Teachmans — each  one  of  whom,  by  the  way,  was  sound 
asleep  during  this  pleasant  interlude — and  shaking  with  the 
cold,  and  sputtering  with  uncontrollable  fury,  the  fat  man  did 
at  length  get  dressed,  and  after  two  or  three  libations  of  milk 
punch,  recovered  his  temper  somewhat,  and  his  spirits  alto- 
gether. 

Although,  however,  Harry  and  I  told  him  very  frankly  that 
we  were  not  merely  the  sole  planners,  but  the  sole  executors, 
of  the  trick — it  was  in  vain  we  spoke.  Tom  would  not  have  it. 

"  No — he  knew — he  knew  well  enough  ;  did  we  go  for  to 
think  he  was  such  an  old  etarnai  fool  as  not  to  know  Jem's 
voice — a  bloody  Decker — he  would  be  the  death  of  him.'' 

And  direful,  in  good  truth,  I  do  believe,  were  the  jokes  prac- 
tical, and  to  him  no  jokes  at  all,  which  poor  Jem  had  to  under- 
go, in  expiation  of  his  fancied  share  in  this  our  misdemeanor. 

Scarce  had  the  row  subsided,  before  the  horses  were  an- 
nounced. Harry  and  I,  and  Tom  and  Timothy,  mounted  the 
old  green  drag ;  and,  with  our  cheroots  lighted — the  only  lights, 
by  the  way,  that  were  visible  at  all — oft*  we  went  at  a  rattling 
trot,  the  horses  in  prime  condition,  full  of  fire,  biting  and  snap- 
ping at  each  other,  and  making  their  bits  clash  and  jingle  every 
moment.  Up  the  long  hill,  and  through  the  shadowy  wood, 
they  strained,  at  full  ten  miles  an  hour,  without  a  touch  of  the 
whip,  or  even  a  word  of  Harry's  well-known  voice. 

We  reached  the  brow  of  the  mountain,  where  there  are  four 
cleared  fields — whereon  I  once  saw  snow  lie  five,  feet  deep  on 
the  tenth  day  of  April— and  an  old  barn ;  and  thence  we  look- 
ed back  through  the  cold  gray  gloom  of  an  autumnal  morning, 
three  hours  at  least  before  the  rising  of  the  sun,  while  the  stars 
were  waning  in  the  dull  sky,  and  the  moon  had  long  since  set, 
toward  the  Greenwood  lake. 

Never  was  there  a  stronger  contrast,  than  between  that  lovely 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  87 

sheet  of  limpid  water,  as  it  lay  now — cold,  dun,  and  dismal, 
like  a  huge  plate  of  pewter,  without  one  glittering  ripple,  with- 
out one  clear  reflection,  surrounded  by  the  wooded  hills  which, 
swathed  in  a  dim  mist,  hung  grim  and  gloomy  over  its  silent 
bosom — and  its  bright  sunny  aspect  on  the  previous  day. 

Adieu !  fair  Greenwood  Lake !  adieu  !  Many  and  blithe  have 
been  the  hours  which  I  have  spent  around,  and  in,  and  on  you — 
and  it  may  well  be  I  shall  never  see  you  more — whether  reflecting 
the  full  fresh  greenery  of  summer ;  or  the  rich  tints  of  cisatlantic 
autumn ;  or  sheeted  with  the  treacherous  ice  ;  but  never,  thou 
sweet  lake,  never  will  thy  remembrance  fade  from  my  bosom, 
while  one  drop  of  life-blood  warms  it ;  so  art  thou  intertwined 
with  memories  of  happy  careless  days,  that  never  can  return — 
of  friends,  truer,  perhaps,  though  rude  and  humble,  than  all 
of  prouder  seeming.  Farewell  to  thee,  fair  lake  !  Long  may 
it  be  before  thy  rugged  hills  be  stripped  of  their  green  garni- 
ture, or  thy  bright  waters*  marred  by  the  unpicturesque  im- 
provements of  man's  avarice  ! — for  truly  thou,  in  this  utilitarian 
age,  and  at  brief  distance  from  America's  metropolis,  art  young, 
and  innocent,  and  unpolluted,  as  when  the  red  man  drank  of 
thy  pure  waters,  long  centuries  ere  he  dreamed  of  the  pale- 
faced  oppressors,  who  have  already  rooted  out  his  race  from 
half  its  native  continent. 

Another  half  hour  brought  us  down  at  a  rattling  pace  to  the 
village,  and  once  again  we  pulled  up  at  Tom's  well-known 
dwelling,  just  as  the  day  was  breaking.  A  crowd  of  loiterers, 
as  usual,  was  gathered  even  at  that  untimely  season  in  the 
large  bar-room ;  and  when  the  clatter  of  our  hoofs  and  wheels 
announced  us,  we  found  no  lack  of  ready-handed  and  quick- 
tongued  assistants. 

*  Marred  it  has  been  long  ago.  A  huge  dam  has  been  drawn  across  its 
outlet,  in  order  to  supply  a  feeder  to  the  Morris  Canal — a  gigantic  piece 
of  unprofitable  improvement,  made,  I  believe,  merely  as  a  basis  on  which 
for  brokers,  stock-jobbers — et  id  genus  omne  of  men  too  untilitarian  and 
ambitious  to  be  content  with  earning  money  honestly — to  exercise  their 
prodigious  'cuteness. 

The  effect  of  this  has  been  to,,,  change  the  bold  shores  into  pestilential 
submerged  swamps,  whereon  the  dead-  trees  still  stand,  tall,  gray  and 
ghostly;  to  convert  a  number  of  acres  of  beautiful  meadow-land  into 
stagnant  grassy  shallows ;  to  back  up  the  waters  at  the  lake's  head,  to  the 
utter  destruction  of  several  fine  farms  ;  and,  last  not  least,  to  create  fever 
and  ague  in  abundance,  where  no  such  thing  had  ever  been  heard  tell  of 
before. 

Certainly  !  your  well  devised  improvement  is  a  great  thing  for  a  country  I 


88  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

"  Take  out  the  horses,  Timothy,"  cried  Harry,  "  unharness 
them,  and  rub  them  down  as  quickly  and  as  thoroughly  as  may 
be — let  them  have  four  quarts  each,  and  mind  that  all  is  ready 
for  a  start  before  an  hour.  Meantime,  Frank,  we  will  overhaul 
the  game,  get  breakfast,  and  hunt  up  a  wagon  for  the  deer  and 
setters." 

"Don't  bother  yourself  about  no  wagon,"  interposed  Tom, 
"  but  come  you  in  and  liquor,  else  we  shall  have  you  gruntin 
half  the  day ;  and  if  old  roan  and  my  long  pig-box  wont  carry 
down  the  deer,  why  I'll  stand  treat." 

A  jorum  was  prepared,  and  discussed  accordingly ;  fresh  ice 
produced,  the  quail  and  woodcock  carefully  unpacked,  and  in- 
stantly re-stowed  with  clean  straw,  a  measure  which,  however, 
seemed  almost  supererogatory,  since  so  completely  had  the  ex- 
ternal air  been  excluded  from  the  game-box,  that  we  found  not 
only  the  lumps  of  ice  in  the  bottom  un thawed,  but  the  flannel 
which  lay  over  it  stiff  frozen  ;  the  birds  were  of  course  perfectly 
fresh,  cool,  and  in  good  condition.  Our  last  day's  batch,  which 
it  was  found  impossible  to  get  into  the  box,  with  all  the  ruffed 
grouse,  fifty  at  least  in  number,  \vere  tied  up  by  the  feet,  two 
brace  and  two  brace,  and  hung  in  festoons  round  the  inside  rails 
of  the  front  seat  and  body,  while  about  thirty  hares  dangled  by 
their  hind  legs,  with  their  long  ears  flapping  to  and  fro,  from 
the  back  seat  and  baggage  rack.  The  wagon  looked,  I  scarce 
know  how,  something  between  an  English  stage-coach  when  the 
merry  days  of  Christmas  are  at  hand,  and  a  game-hunter's 
taxed  cart. 

The  business  of  re-packing  had  been  scarce  ficcornplished,  and 
Harry  and  myself  had  just  retired  to  change  our  shooting-jack- 
ets and  coarse  fustians  for  habiliments  more  suitable  for  the  day 
and  our  destination — New  York,  to-wit,  and  Sunday — when 
forth  came  Tom,  bedizened  from  top  to  toe  in  his  most  new  and 
knowing  rig,  and  looking  now,  to  do  him  justice,  a  most  re- 
spectable and- portly  yeoman. 

A  broad-brimmed,  low-crowned,  and  long-napped  white  hat, 
set  forth  assuredly  to  the  best  advantage  his  rotund,  rubicund, 
good-humored  phiz ;  a  clean  white  handkerchief  circled  his 
sturdy  neck,  on  the  voluminous  folds  of  which  reposed  in  placid 
dignity  the  mighty  collops  of  his  double  chin.  A  bright  canary 
waistcoat  of  imported  kerseymere,  with  vast  mother-of-pearl 
buttons,  and  a  broad-skirted  coat  of  bright  blue  cloth,  with  glit- 
tering brass  buttons  half  the  size  of  dollars,  covered  his  upper 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  80 

man,  while  loose  drab  trousers  of  stout  double-milled,  and  a 
pair  of  well-blacked  boots,  completed  his  attire ;  so  that  he 
looked  as  different  an  animal  as  possible,  from  the  unwashed, 
uncombed,  half-naked  creature  he  presented,  when  lounging  in 
his  bar-room  in  his  every-day  apparel. 

"  Why,  halloa,  Guts !"  cried  Archer,  as  he  entered,  "  you've 
broken  out  here  in  a  new  place  altogether." 

"  Now  quit,  you,  callin  of  me  Guts,"  responded  Tom,  more 
testily  than  I  had  ever  heard  him  speak  to  Harry,  whose  every 
whim  and  frolic  he  seemed  religiously  to  venerate  and  humor  f 
"  a  fellow  doesn't  want  to  have  it  4  Guts'  here, -and  *  Guts'  there, 
over  half  a  county.  Why,  now,  it  was  but  a  week  since,  while 
'lections  was  a  goin'  on,  I  got  a  letter  from  some  d — d  chaps  to 
Newburg — '  Eouse  about  now,  old  Guts,  you'll  need  it  this 
election  f  " 

"  Ha  !  ha  !  ha  !"  shouted  Harry  and  I  almost  simultaneously, 
delighted  at  Tom's  evident  annoyance. 

""Who  wrote  it,  Tom  ?" 

"  That's  what  I'd  jist  give  fifty  dollars  to  know  now,"  replied 
mine  iiost,  clinching  his  mighty  paw. 

"  Why,  what  would  you  do,'7  said  I,  "  if  you  did  know  ?" 

"  Lick  him,  by  George  !  Lick  him,  in  the  first  place,  till  he 
was  as  nigh  dead  as  I  daared  lick  him — and  then  I'd  make  him 
eat  up  every  darned  line  of  it !  But  come,  come — breakfast's 
ready  ;  and  while  we're  getting  through  with  it,  Timothy  and 
Jem  Lyn  will  fix  the  pig-box,  and  make  the  deer  all  right  and 
tight  for  travelling !" 

No  sooner  said  than  done — an  ample  meal  was  speedily  de- 
spatched— and  when  that  worthy  came  in  to  announce  all  ready, 
for  the  saving  of  time,  master  Timothy  was  accommodated  with 
a  seat  at  a  side-table,  which  he  occupied  with  becoming  dignity, 
abstaining,  as  it  were,  in  consciousness  of  his  honorable  promo- 
tion, from  any  of  the  quaint  and  curious  witticisms,  in  which  he 
was  wont  to  indulge ;  but  manducating,  with  vast  energy,  the 
various  good  things  which  were  set  before  him. 

It  was  a  clear,  bright  Sabbath  morning,  as  ever  shone  down 
on  a  sinful  world,  on  which  we  started  homeward — and,  though 
I  fear  there  was  not  quite  so  much  solemnity  in  our  demeanor 
as  might  have  best  accorded  with  the  notions  of  over  strict  pro- 
fessors, I  can  still  answer  that,  with  much  mirth,  much  merri- 
ment, and  much  good  feeling  in  our  hearts,  there  was  no  touch 
of  irreverence,  or  any  taint  of  what  could  be  called  sinful  thought. 


90  WARWICK    WOODLANDS* 

The  sun  had  risen  fairly,  but  the  hour  was  still  too  early  for  the 
sweet  peaceful  music  of  the  church-going  bells  to  have  made 
their  echoes  tunable  through  the  rich  valley.  A  merry  caval- 
cade, indeed,  we  started — Harry  leading  the  way  at  his  usual 
slap-dash  pace,  so  that  one,  less  a  workman  than  himself,  would 
have  said  he  went  up  hill  and  down  at  the  same  break-neck 
pace,  find  would  take  all  the  grit  out  of  his  team  before  he  had 
gone  ten  miles — while  a  more  accurate  observer  would  have 
seen,  at  a  glance,  that  he  varied  his  rate  at  almost  every  ine- 
quality of  road,  that  he  quartered  every  rut,  avoided  every  jog 
or  mud-hole,  husbanded  for  the  very  best  his  horses'  strength, 
never  making  them  either  pull  or  hold  a  moment  longer  than 
was  absolutely  necessary  from  the  abruptness  of  the  ground. 

At  his  left  hand  sat  I,  while  Tom,  in  honor  of  his  superior 
bulk  and  weight,  occupied  with  his  magnificent  and  portly  per- 
son the  whole  of  the  back  seat,  keeping  his  countenance  as 
sanctified  as  possible,  and  nodding,  with  some  quaint  and  char- 
acteristic observation,  to  each  one  of  the  scattered  groups  of 
country-people,  which  we  encountered  every  quarter  of  a  mile 
for  the  first  hour  of  our  route,  wending  their  way  toward  the 
village  church — but,  when  we  reached  the  forest-mantled  road 
which  clombe  the  mountain,  making  the  arched  woods  resound 
to  many  a  jovial  catch  or  merry  hunting  chorus. 

Mounted  sublime  on  an  arm- chair  lashed  to  the  forepart  of 
the  pig-box,  sat  Timothy  in  state — his  legs  well  muffled  in  a 
noble  scarlet-fringed  buffalo  skin,  and  his  body  encased  in  his 
livery  top-coat — the  setters  and  the  spaniels  crouching  most 
meekly  at  his  feet,  and  the  two  noble  bucks — the  fellow  on 
whose  steaks  we  had  already  made  an  inroad,  having  been  left 
as  fat  Tom's  portion — securely  corded  down  upon  a  pile  of 
straw,  with  their  sublime  and  antlered  crests  drooping  all  spirit- 
less and  humble  over  the  backboard,  toward  the  frozen  soil 
which  crashed  and  rattled  under  the  ponderous  hoofs  of  the 
magnificent  roan  horse — Tom's  special  favorite — which,  though 
full  seventeen  hands  high,  and  heavy  in  proportion,  yet  showing 
a  good  strain  of  blood,  trotted  away  with  his  huge  load  at  full 
ten  miles  an  hour. 

Plunging  into  the  deep  recesses  of  the  Greenwoods,  hill  after 
hill  we  scaled,  a  toilsome  length  of  stony  steep  ascents,  almost 
precipitous,  until  we  reached  the  back-bone  of  the  mountain 
ridge— a  rugged,  bare,  sharp  edge  of  granite  rock,  without  a 
particle  of  soil  upon  it,  diving  down  at  an  angle  not  much  less 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  91 

than  forty-five  degrees  into  a  deep  ravine,  through  which,  thun- 
dered and  roared  a  flashing  torrent.  This  fearful  descent  over- 
past, and  that  in  perfect  safety,  we  rolled  merrily  away  down 
hill,  till  we  reached  Colonel  Beam's  tavern,  a  neat,  low-browed, 
Dutch,  stone  farm-house,  situate  in  an  angle  scooped  out  of  a 
green  hill-side,  with  half  a  dozen  tall  and  shadowy  elms  before 
it — a  bright  crystal  stream  purling  along  into  the  horse-trough 
through  a  miniature  aqueduct  of  hollowed  logs,  and  a  clear  cold 
spring  in  front  of  it,  with  half  a  score  of  fat  and  lazy  trout  float- 
ing in  its  transparent  waters. 

A  hearty  welcome,  and  a  no  less  hearty  meal  having  been 
here  encountered  and  despatched,  we  rattled  off  again,  through 
laden  orchards  and  rich  meadows  ;  passed  the  confluence  of  the 
three  bright  rivers  which  issue  from  their  three  mountain  gorges, 
to  form,  by  their  junction,  the  fairest  of  New  Jersey's  rivers,  the 
broad  Passaic ;  reached  the  small  village  noted  for  rum-drink- 
ing and  quarter  racing — high  Pompton — thence  by  the  Preak- 
ness  mountain,  and  Mose  Canouze's  tavern — whereat,  in  honor 
of  Tom's  friend,  a  worthy  of  the  self-same  kidney  with  himself, 
we  paused  awhile — to  Paterson,  the  filthiest  town,  situate  on 
one  of  the  loveliest  rivers  in  the  world,  and  famous  only  for  the 
possession,  in  the  person  of  its  Catholic  priest,  of  the  finest 
scholar  and  best  fellow  in  America,  whom  we  unluckily  found 
not  at  home,  and  therefore  tasted  not,  according  to  friend  Har- 
ry's promise,  the  splendid  Innishowen  which  graces  at  all  times 
his  hospitable  board. 

Eight  o'clock  brought  us  to  Hoboken,  where,  by  good  luck, 
the  ferry  boat  lay  ready — and  nine  o'clock  had  not  struck  when 
we  three  sat  down  once  again  about  a  neat  small  supper-table, 
before  a  bright  coal  fire,  in  Archer's  snuggery — Tom  glorying 
in  the  prospect  of  the  races  on  the  morrow,  and  I  regretting 
that  I  had  brought  to  its  conclusion 

MY  FIRST  WEEK  IN  THE  WOODLANDS. 


THE  WARWICK  WOODLANDS, 


ON  A  SECOND  VISIT. 


THE  WAYSIDE  INN. 

ON  a  still  clear  October  evening,  Frank  Forester  and  Harry 
Archer  were  sitting  at  the  open  window  of  a  neat  country  tav- 
ern, in  a  sequestered  nook  of  Rockland  County,  looking  out 
upon  as  beautiful  a  view  as  ever  gladdened  the  eyes  of  wander- 
ing amateur  or  artist. 

The  house  was  a  large  old-fashioned  stone  mansion,  certainly 
not  of  later  date  than  the  commencement  of  the  revolution  ; 
and  probably  had  been,  in  its  better  days,  the  manor-house  of 
some  considerable  proprietor — the  windows  were  of  a  form  very 
unusual  in  the  States,  opening  like  doors,  with  heavy  wooden 
mullions  and  small  lattices,  while  the  walls  were  so  thick  as  to 
form  a  deep  embrasure,  provided  with  a  cushioned  window- 
seat  ;  the  parlor,  in  which  the  friends  had  taken  up  their  tem- 
porary domicile,  contained  two  of  these  pleasant  lounges,  the 
larger  looking  out  due  south  upon  the  little  garden,  with  the 
road  before  it,  and,  beyond  the  road,  a  prospect,  of  which  more 
anon — the  other  commanding  a  space  of  smooth  green  turf  in 
front  of  the  stables,  whereon  our  old  acquaintance,  Timothy, 
was  leading  to  and  fro  a  pair  of  smoking  horses.  The  dark- 
green  drag,  with  all  its  winter  furniture  of  gaily  decorated  bear- 
skins, stood  half-seen  beneath  the  low-arched  wagon-shed. 

The  walls  of  the  room — the  best  room  of  the  tavern — were 
pannelled  with  the  dark  glossy  wood  of  the  black  cherry,  and 
a  huge  mantel-piece  of  the  same  material,  took  up  at  least  one 
half  of  the  side  opposite  the  larger  window,  while  on  the  hearth 
below  reposed  a  glowing  bed  of  red-hot  hickory  ashes,  a  foot  at 
least  in  depth,  a  huge  log  of  that  glorious  fuel  blazing  upon 
the  massive  andirons.  Two  large,  deep  gun-cases,  a  leathern 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  93 

magazine  of  shot,  and  sundry  canisters  of  diamond  gunpowder, 
B  rough's,  were  displayed  on  a  long  table  under  the  end  win- 
dow— a  four-horse  whip,  and  two  fly-rods  in  India-rubber  cases, 
stood  in  the  chimney-corner;  while  revelling  in  the  luxurious 
warmth  of  the  piled  hearth  lay  basking  on  the  rug,  three  ex- 
quisitely formed  Blenheim  spaniels  of  the  large  breed — short- 
legged  and  bony,  with  ears  that  almost  swept  the  ground  as 
they  stood  upright,  and  coats  as  soft  and  lustrous  as  floss 
silk. 

On  a  round  table,  which  should  have  occupied  the  centre  of 
the  parlor,  now  pulled  up  to  the  window-seat,  whereon  reclined 
the  worthies,  stood  a  large  pitcher  of  iced  water  ;  a  square  case- 
bottle  of  cut  crystal  filled,  as  the  flavor  which  pervaded  the 
whole  room  sufficiently  demonstrated,  with  superb  old  Antigua 
Shrub ;  several  large  rummers  corresponding  to  the  fashion  of 
the  bottle  ;  a  twisted  taper  of  green  wax,  and  a  small  silver 
plate  with  six  or  eight  cheroots,  real  manillas. 

Supper  was  evidently  over,  and  the  friends,  amply  feasted, 
were  now  luxuriating  in  the  delicious  indolence,  half-dozing, 
half-day-dreaming,  of  a  calm  sleepy  smoke,  modestly  lubricated 
by  an  occasional  sip  of  the  cool  beverage  before  them.  If  we 
except  a  pile  of  box-coats,  capes,  and  macintoshes  of  every  cut 
and  color — a  travelling  liquor-case  which,  standing  open,  dis- 
played the  tops  of  three  more  bottles  similar  to  that  on  the  ta- 
ble, and  spaces  lined  with  velvet  for  all  the  glass  in  use — and 
another  little  leathern  box,  which,  like  the  liquor-case,  showed 
its  contents  of  several  silver  plates,  knives,  forks,  spoons,  flasks 
of  sauce,  and  condiments  of  different  kinds — the  whole  interior, 
as  a  painter  would  have  called  it,  has  been  depicted  with  all 
accuracy. 

Without,  the  view  on  which  the  windows  opened  was  indeed 
most  lovely.  The  day  had  been  very  bright  and  calm  ;  there 
was  not  a  single  cloud  in  the  pale  transparent  heaven,  and  the 
sun,  which  had  shone  cheerfully  all  day  from  his  first  rising  in 
the  east,  till  now  when  he  was  hanging  like  a  ball  of  bloody 
fire  in  the  thin  filmy  haze  which  curtained  the  horizon,  was  still 
shooting  his  long  rays,  and  casting  many  a  shadow  over  tfye 
slopes  and  hollows  which  diversified  the  scene. 

Immediately  across  the  road  lay  a  rich  velvet  meadow,  luxu- 
riant still  and  green — for  the  preceding  month  had  been  rather 
wet,  and  frost  had  not  set  in  to  nip  its  verdure — sloping  down 
southerly  to  a  broad  shallow  trout-stream,  which  rippled  all 


94  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

glittering  and  bright  over  a  pebbly  bed,  although  the  margin 
on  the  hither  side  was  somewhat  swampy,  with  tufts  of  willows 
and  bushes  of  dark  alder  fringing  it  here  and  there,  and  dip- 
ping their  branches  in  its  waters — the  farther  bank  was  skirted 
by  a  tall  grove  of  maple,  hickory,  and  oak,  with  a  thick  under- 
growth of  sumach  arrayed  in  all  the  gorgeous  garniture  of  au- 
tumn, purples  and  brilliant  scarlets  and  chrome  yellows,  mixed 
up  and  harmonized  with  the  dark  copper  foliage  of  a  few  sere 
beeches,  and  the  gray  trunks  apparent  here  and  there  through 
the  thin  screen  of  the  fast  falling  leaves. 

Beyond  this  grove,  the  bank  rose  bold  and  rich  in  swelling 
curves,  with  a  tine  corn-field,  topped  already  to  admit  every 
sunbeam  to  the  ripening  ears.  A  buckwheat  stubble,  conspicu- 
ous by  its  deep  ruddy  hue,  and  two  or  three  brown  pastures 
divided  by  high  fences,  along  the  lines  of  which  flourished  a 
copious  growth  of  cat-briers  and  sumachs,  with  here  and  there 
a  goodly  tree  waving  above  them,  made  up  the  centre  of  the 
picture.  Beyond  this  cultured  knoll  there  seemed  to  be  a  deep 
pitch  of  the  land  clothed  with  a  hanging  wood  of  heavy  tim- 
ber ;  and,  above  this  again,  the  soil  surged  upward  into  a  huge 
and  round-topped  hill,  with  several  golden  stubbles,  shining  out 
from  the  frame- work  of  primeval  forest,  which,  dark  with  many 
a  mighty  pine,  covered  the  mountain  to  the  top,  except  where 
at  its  western  edge  it  showed  a  huge  and  rifted  precipice  of 
rock. 

To  the  right,  looking  down  the  stream,  the  hills  closed  in 
quite  to  the  water's  brink  on  the  far  side,  rough  and  uncultiva- 
ted, with  many  a  blue  and  misty  peak  discovered  through  the 
gaps  in  their  bold,  broken  outline,  and  a  broad,  lake-like  sheet, 
as  calm  and  brightly  pictured  as  a  mirror,  reflecting  their  in- 
verted beauties  so  wondrously  distinct  and  vivid,  that  the 
amazed  eye  might  not  recognise  the  parting  between  reality  and 
shadow.  An  old  gray  mill,  deeply  embosomed  in  a  clump  of 
weeping  willows,  still  verdant,  though  the  woods  were  sere  and 
waxing  leafless,  explained  the  nature  of  that  tranquil  pool, 
while,  beyond  that,  the  hills  swept  down  from  the  rear  of  the 
building,  which  contained  the  parlor  whence  the  two  sportsmen 
gazed,  and  seemed  entirely  to  bar  the  valley,  so  suddenly,  and 
in  so  short  a  curve,  did  it  wind  round  their  western  shoulder. 
To  the  left  hand,  the  view  was  closed  by  a  thick  belt  of  second 
growth,  through  which  the  sandy  road  and  glittering  stream 
wandered  away  together  on  their  mazy  path,  and  over  which 


WARWICK  WOODLANDS.  95 

the  summits  of  yet  loftier  and  more  rugged  steeps  towered 
heavenward. 

Over  this  valley  they  had  for  some  time  gazed  in  silence,  till 
now  the  broad  sun  sank  behind  the  mountains,  and  the  shrill 
whistle  of  the  quail,  which  had  been  momently  audible  during 
the  whole  afternoon,  ceased  suddenly  ;  four  or  five  night-hawks 
might  be  seen  wheeling  high  in  pursuit  of  their  insect  prey 
through  the  thin  atmosphere,  and  the  sharp  chirrup  of  a  soli- 
tary katydid,  the  last  of  its  summer  tribe,  was  the  only  sound 
that  interrupted  the  faint  rush  of  the  rapid  stream,  which  came 
more  clearly  on  the  ear  now  that  the  louder  noises  of  busy  bab- 
bling daylight  had  yielded  to  the  stillness  of  approaching  night. 
Before  long  a  bright  gleam  shot  through  the  tufted  outline  of 
a  dark  wooded  hill,  and  shortly  after,  just  when  a  gray  and 
misty  shadow  had  settled  down  upon  the  half-seen  landscape, 
the  broad  full  moon  came  soaring  up  above  the  tree-tops,  pour- 
ing her  soft  and  silver  radiance  over  the  lovely  valley,  and 
investing  its  rare  beauties  with  something  of  romance — a  sen- 
timent which  belongs  not  to  the  gay,  gaudy  sunshine. 

Just  at  this  moment,  while  neither  of  the  friends  felt  much 
inclined  to  talk,  the  door  opened  suddenly,  and  Timothy's  black 
head  was  thrust  in,  with  a  query  if  "  they  did'nt  need  t'  waax 
candles  ?" 

"  Not  yet,  Tim,"  answered  Archer,  "  not  yet  for  an  hour  or 
so — but  hold  a  minute — how  have  the  horses  fed  ?" 

"  T*  ould  gray  drayed  off  directly,  and  he's  gane  tull  t'  loike 
bricks — but  t'  bay's  no  but  sillyish — he  keeps  a  breaking  oot 
again  for  iver — and  s'ae  Ay'se  give  him  a  hot  maash  enow  !" 

"  That's  right.  I  saw  he  wasn't  quite  up  to  the  mark  the 
last  ten  miles  or  so.  If  he  don't  dry  off  now,  give  him  a  cor- 
dial ball  out  of  the  tool-chest — one  of  the  number  3 — camphire 
and  cardamums  and  ginger  ;  a  clove  of  garlic,  and  treacle  quan- 
tum suff :  hey,  Frank,  that  will  set  him  to  rights,  I  warrant  it. 
Now  have  you  dined  yourself,  or  supped,  as  the  good  people 
here  insist  on  calling  it  ?" 

"  Weel  Ay  wot,  have  I,  sur,"  responded  Timothy  ;  "  an  hour 
agone  and  better." 

"  Exactly  ;  then  step  out  yourself  into  the  kitchen,  and  make 
us  a  good  cup  of  our  own  coffee,  strong  and  hot,  do  you  see  1 
and  when  that's  done,  bring  it  in  with  the  candles  ;  and,  hark 
you,  run  up  to  the  bed-room  and  bring  my  netting  needles 
down,  and  the  ball  of  silk  twist,  and  the  front  of  that  new 


98  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

game-bag,  I  began  the  other  night.  If  you  were  not  as  lazy 
as  possible,  friend  Frank,  you  would  bring  your  fly-book  out, 
when  the  light  comes,  and  tie  some  hackles." 

"  Perhaps  I  may,  when  the  light  comes,"  Forester  answered  ; 
"  but  I'm  in  no  hurry  for  it ;  I  like  of  all  things  to  look  out, 
and  watch  the  changes  of  the  night  over  a  landscape  even  less 
beautiful  than  this.  One  half  the  pleasures  of  field  sports  to 
me,  is  other  than  the  mere  excitement.  If  there  were  nothing 
but  the  eagerness  of  the  pursuit,  and  the  gratification  of  suc- 
cessful vanity,  fond  as  I  am  of  shooting,  I  should,  I  believe, 
have  long  since  wearied  of  it ;  but  there  are  so  many  other 
things  connected  with  it — the  wandering  among  the  loveliest 
scenery — the  full  enjoyment  of  the  sweetest  weather — the  learn- 
ing the  innumerable  and  all-wondrous  attributes  and  instincts 
of  animated  nature — all  these  are  what  make  up  to  me  the 
rapture  I  derive  from  woodcraft !  Why,  such  a  scene  as  this 
— -a  scene  which  how  few,  save  the  vagrant  sportsman,  or  the 
countryman  who  but  rarely  appreciates  the  picturesque,  have 
ever  witnessed — is  enough,  with  the  pure  and  tranquil  thoughts 
it  calls  up  in  the  heart,  to  plead  a  trumpet-tongued  apology,  for 
all  the  vanity,  and  uselessness,  and  cruelty,  and  what  not,  so 
constantly  alleged  against  our  field  sports." 

"Oh!  yes,"  cried  "Harry;  "  yes,  indeed,  Frank,  I  perfectly 
agree  with  you.  But  all  that  last  is  mere  humbug—humbug, 
too,  of  the  lowest  and  most  foolish  order — I  never  hear  a  man 
droning  about  the  cruelty  of  field  sports,  but  I  set  him  down, 
on  the  spot,  either  as  a  hypocrite  or  a  fool,  and  probably  a  glo- 
rious union  of  the  two.  When  man  can  exist  without  killing 
myriads  of  animals  with  every  breath  of  vital  air  he  draws,  with 
every  draught  of  water  he  imbibes,  with  every  footstep  he  prints 
upon  the  turf  or  gravel  of  his  garden— when  he  abstains  from 
every  sort  of  animal  food — and,  above  all,  when  he  abstains 
from  his  great  pursuit  of  torturing  his  fellow  men— then  let 
him  prate,  if  he  will,  of  sportsmen's  cruelty. 

"  For  show  me  one  trade,  one  profession,  wherein  one  man's 
success  is  not  based  upon  another's  failure ;  all  rivalry,  all  com- 
petition, triumph  and  rapture  to  the  winner,  disgrace  and  an- 
guish to  the  loser  !  And  then  these  fellows,  fattened  on  widows' 
tears  and  orphans'  misery,  preach  you  pure  homilies  about  the 
cruelty  of  taking  life.  But  you  are  quite  right  about  the  com- 
bination of  pleasures — the  excitement,  too,  of  quick  motion 
through  the  fresh  air — the  sense  of  liberty  amid  wide  plains,  or 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  97 

tangled  woods,  or  on  the  wild  hill  tops — this,  surely,  to  the  re- 
flective sportsman — and  who  can  be  a  true  sportsman,  and  not 
reflective — is  the  great  charm  of  his  pursuit." 

"  And  do  you  not  think  that  this  pleasure  exists  in  a  higher 
degree  here  in  America  than  in  our  own  England  ?'' 

"  As  how,  Frank  ?— I  don't  take." 

"  Why,  in  the  greater,  I  will  not  say  beauty — for  I  don't 
think  there  is  greater  natural  beauty  in  the  general  landscape 
of  the  States — but  novelty  and  wild  ness  of  the  scenery  !  Even 
the  richest  and  most  cultivated  tracts  of  America,  that  I  have 
seen,  except  the  Western  part  of  New  York,  which  is  unques- 
tionably the  ugliest,  and  dullest,  and  most  unpoetical  region  on 
earth,  have  a  young  untamed  freshness  about  them,  which  you 
do  not  find  in  England. 

"  In  the  middle  of  the  high-tilled  and  fertile  cornfield  you 
come  upon  some  sudden  hollow,  tangled  with  brake  and  bush, 
which  hedge  in  some  small  pool  where  float  the  brilliant  cups 
and  smooth  leaves  of  the  water  lily,  and  whence,  on  your  ap- 
proach, up  springs  the  blue-winged  teal  or  gorgeous  wood-duck. 
Then  the  long  sweeping  woodlands,  embracing  in  themselves 
•every  variety  of  ground,  deep  marshy  swamp,  and  fertile  level 
thick-set  with  giant  timber,  and  sandy  barrens  with  their  scrubby 
undergrowth,  and  difficult  rocky  steeps ;  and,  above  all,  the 
seeming  and  comparative  solitude — the  dinner  carried  along 
with  you  and  eaten  under  the  shady  tree,  beside  the  bubbling 
basin  of  some  spring — all  this  is  vastly  more  exciting,  than 
walking  through  trim  stubbles  and  rich  turnip  fields,  and  lunch- 
ing on  bread  and  cheese  and  home-brewed,  in  a  snug  farm- 
house. In  short,  field  sports  here  have  a  richer  range,  are  much 
more  various,  wilder — " 

"  Hold  there,  Frank  ;  hold  hard  there ;  I  cannot  concede  the  . 
wilder,  not  the  really  wilder — seemingly  they  are  wilder ;  for, 
as  you  say,  the  scenery  is  wilder — and  all  the  game,  with  the 
exception  of  the  English  snipe,  being  wood-haunters,  you  are 
led  into  rougher  districts.  But  oh  !  no,  no  ! — the  field  sports 
are  not  really  wilder — in  the  Atlantic  States  at  least — nor  half 
so  wild  as  those  of  England !" 

"  I  should  like  to  hear  you  prove  that,  Archer,"  answered 
Frank,  "  for  I  am  constantly  beset  with  the  superiority  of  Amer- 
ican field  sports  to  tame  English  preserve  shooting !'' 

**  Pooh !  pooh !  that  is  only  by  people  who  know  nothing 
about  either ;  by  people  who  fancy  that  a  preserve  means  a 
5 


08  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

park  full  of  tame  birds,  instead  of  a  range,  perhaps,  of  many 
thousand  acres,  of  the  very  wildest,  barest  moorland,  stocked 
with  the  wariest  and  shyest  of  the  feathered  race,  the  red  grouse. 
But  what  I  mean  to  say,  is  this,  that  every  English  game-bird — 
to  use  an  American  phrase — is  warier  and  wilder  than  its  com- 
peer in  the  United  States.  Who,  for  instance,  ever  saw  in  Eng- 
land, Ireland,  or  Scotland,  eighteen  or  twenty  snipe  or  wood- 
cock, lying  within  a  space  of  twelve  yards  square,  two  or  three 
dogs  pointing  in  the  midst  of  them,  and  the  birds  rising  one 
by  one,  the  gunshots  rattling  over  them,  till  ten  or  twelve  are 
on  the  ground  before  there  is  time  to  bag  one. 

"  English  partridge  will,  I  grant,  do  this  sometimes,  on  very 
warm  days  in  September  ;  but  let  a  man  go  out  with  his  heavy 
gun  and  steady  dog  late  in  December,  or  the  month  preceding 
it,  let  him  see  thirty  or  more  covies — as  on  good  ground  he 
may — let  him  see  every  covey  rise  at  a  hundred  yards,  and  fly 
a  mile  ;  let  him  be  proud  and  glad  to  bag  his  three  or  four 
brace  ;  and  then  tell  me  that  there  is  any  sport  in  these  Atlan- 
tic States  so  wild  as  English  winter  field-shooting. 

"  Of  grouse  shooting  on  the  bare  hills,  which,  by  the  way, 
are  wilder,  more  solitary  far,  and  more  aloof  from  the  abodes  of 
men,  than  any  thing  between  Boston  and  the  Green  Bay,  I  do 
not  of  course  speak  ;  as  it  confessedly  is  the  most  wild  and 
difficult  kind  of  shooting. 

"  Still  less  of  deer  stalking — for  Scrope's  book  has  been  read 
largely  even  here  ;  and  no  man,  how  prejudiced  soever,  can 
compare  with  the  standing  at  a  deer-path  all  day  long  waiting 
till  a  great  timid  beast  is  driven  up  within  ten*  yards  of  your 
muzzle,  with  that  extraordinary  sport  on  bald  and  barren  moun- 
tains, where  nothing  but  vast  and  muscular  exertion,  the  eye  of 
the  eagle,  and  the  cunning  of  the  serpent,  can  bring  you  within 
range  of  the  wild  cattle  of  the  hills. 

"Battue  shooting,  i  grant,  is  tame  work;  but  partridge 
shooting,  after  the  middle  of  October,  is  infinitely  wilder,  re- 
quiring more  exertion  and  more  toil  than  quail  shooting.  Even 
the  pheasant — the  tamest  of  our  English  game — is  infinitely 
bolder  on  the  wing  than  the  ruffed  grouse,  or  New  York  part- 
ridge ;  while  about  snipe  and  woodcock  there  exists  no  com- 
parison— since  by  my  own  observation,  confirmed  by  the  opinion 
of  old  sportsmen,  I  am  convinced  that  nine-tenths  of  the  snipe 
and  cock  bagged  in  the  States,  are  killed  between  fifteen  and 
twenty  paces  ;  while  I  can  safely  say,  I  never  saw  a  full  snipe 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  99 

rise  in  England  within  that  average  distance.  Quail  even,  the 
hardest  bird  to  kill,  the  swiftest  and  the  boldest  on  the  wing, 
are  very  rarely  killed  further  than  twenty-five  to  thirty,  whereas 
you  may  shoot  from  daylight  to  sunset  in  England,  after  Octo- 
ber, and  not  pick  up  a  single  partridge  within  the  farthest,  as  a 
minimum  distance." 

"Well!  that's  all  true,  I  grant,"  said  Forester,  "yet  even 
you  allow  that  it  is  harder  to  kill  game  here  than  at  home  ;  and 
if  I  do  not  err,  I  have  heard  you  admit  that  the  best  shot  in  all 
England  could  be  beat  easily  by  the  crack  shots  on  this  side ; 
how  does  all  this  agree  !" 

"  Why  very  easily,  I  think,"  Harry  replied,  "  though  to  the 
last  remark,  I  added  in  his  first  season  here  !  Now  that  Amer- 
ican field  sports  are  wilder  in  one  sense,  I  grant  readily;  with 
the  exception  of  snipe-shooting  here,  and  grouse-shooting  in 
Scotland,  the  former  being  tamer,  in  all  senses,  than  any  Eng- 
lish— the  latter  wilder  in  all  senses  than  any  American — field- 
sport. 

"  American  sporting,  however,  is  certainly  wilder,  in  so  much 
as  it  is  pursued  on  much  wilder  ground ;  in  so  much  as  we 
have  a  greater  variety  of  game — and  in  so  much  as  we  have 
many  more  snap  shots,  and  fewer  fair  dead  points. 

"  Harder  it  is,  I  grant ;  for  it  is  all,  with  scarcely  an  excep- 
tion, followed  in  very  thick  and  heavy  covert — covert  to  which 
the  thickest  woods  I  ever  saw  in  England  are  but  as  open 
ground.  Moreover,  the  woods  are  so  very  large  that  the  gun 
must  be  close  up  with  the  dog  ;  and  consequently  the  shots 
must,  half  of  them,  be  fired  in  attitudes  most  awkward,  and  in 
ground  which  would,  I  think,  at  home,  be  generally  styled  im- 
practicable ;  thirdly,  all  the  summer  shooting  here  is  made  with 
the  leaf  on — with  these  thick  tangled  matted  swamps  clad  in 
the  thickest  foliage. 

"  Your  dogs  must  beat  within  twenty  yards  at  farthest,  and 
when  they  stand  you  are  aware  of  the  fact  rather  by  ceasing  to 
hear  their  motion,  than  by  seeing  them  at  point ;  I  am  satisfied 
that  of  six  pointed  shots  in  summer  shooting,  three  at  the  least 
must  be  treated  as  snap  shots !  Many  birds  must  be  shot  at — 
and  many  are  killed — which  are  never  seen  at  all,  till  they  are 
bagged  ;  and  many  men  here  will  kill  three  out  of  four  summer 
woodcock,  day  in  and  day  out,  where  an  English  sportsman, 
however  crack  a  shot  he  might  be,  would  give  the  thing  up  in 
despair  in  half  an  hour. 


100  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

"  Practice,  however,  soon  brings  this  all  to  rights.  The  first 
season  I  shot  here — I  was  a  very  fair,  indeed  a  good,  young 
shot,  when  I  came  out  hither — not  at  all  crack,  but  decidedly 
better  than  the  common  run  ! — the  first  day  I  shot  was  on  4th 
of  July,  1832,  the  place  Seer's  swamp,  the  open  end  of  it;  the 
witness  old  Tom  Draw — and  there  I  missed,  in  what  we  now 
call  open  covert,  fourteen  birds  running ;  and  left  the  place  in 
despair — I  could  not,  though  I  missed  at  home  by  shooting  too 
quick — I  could  not,  for  the  life  of  me,  shoot  quick  enough. 
Even  you,  Frank,  shoot  three  times  as  well  as  you  did,  when 
you  began  here  ;  yet  you  began  in  autumn,  which  is  decidedly 
a  great  advantage,  and  came  on  by  degrees,  so  that  the  follow- 
ing summer  you  were  not  so  much  nonplussed,  though  I  re- 
member the  first  day  or  two,  you  bitched  it  badly." 

"  Well,  I  believe  I  must  knock  under,  Harry,"  Forester  an- 
swered ;  "  and  here  comes  Timothy  with  the  coffee,  and  so  we 
will  to  bed,  that  taken,  though  I  do  want  to  argufy  with  you, 
on  some  of  your  other  notions  about  dogs,  scent,  and  so  forth. 
But  do  you  think  the  Commodore  will  join  us  here  to-morrow  ?" 

"  No  1  I  don't  think  so,"  Harry  said,  "  I  know  it !  Did  not 
he  arrive  in  New  York  last  first  of  July,  from  a  yachting  tour  at 
four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  ;  receive  my  note  saying  that  I 
was  off  to  Tom's  that  morning ;  and  start  by  the  Highlander  at 
five  that  evening  ?  Did  he  not  get  a  team  at  Whited's  and 
travel  all  night  through,  and  find  me  just  sitting  down  to  break- 
fast, and  change  his  toggery,  and  out,  and  walk  all  day — like  a 
trump  as  he  is  ?  And  did  not  we,  by  the  same  token,  bag — 
besides  twenty-five  more  killed  that  we  could  not  find — one 
hundred  and  fifteen  cock  between  ten  o'clock  and  sunset ;  while 
you,  you  false  deceiver,  were  kicking  up  your  heels  in  Buffalo  ? 
Is  not  all  this  a  true  bill,  and  have  you  now  the  impudence  to 
ask  me  whether  /  think  the  Commodore  will  come  ?  I  only 
wish  I  was  as  sure  of  a  day's  sport  to-morrow,  as  I  am  of  his 
being  to  the  fore  at  luncheon  time !" 

"  At  luncheon  time,  hey  ?  I  did  not  know  that  you  looked 
for  him  so  early  !  Will  he  be  in  time,  then,  for  the  afternoon's 
shooting  ?" 

"  Why,  certainly  he  will,"  returned  Archer.  "  The  wind  has 
been  fair  up  the  river  all  day  long,  though  it  has  been  but  light ; 
and  the  lanthe  will  run  up  before  it  like  a  race-horse.  I  should 
not  be  much  surprised  if  he  were  here  to  breakfast." 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  101 

"  And  that  we  may  be  up  in  time  for  him,  if  perchance  he 
should,  let  us  to  bed  forthwith,"  said  Frank  with  a  heavy  yawn. 

"  I  am  content/'  answered  Harry,  finishing  his  cup  of  coffee, 
and  flinging  the  stump  of  his  cheroot  into  the  fire.  "  Good- 
night !  Timothy  will  call  you  in  the  morning." 

"  Goodnight,  old  fellow." 

And  the  friends  parted  merrily,  in  prospect  of  a  pleasant  day's 
sport  on  the  morrow. 


THE  MORNING'S  SPORT. 

IT  was  not  yet  broad  daylight  when  Harry  Archer,  who  had, 
as  was  usual  with  him  on  his  sporting  tour,  arisen  with  the  lark, 
was  sitting  in  the  little  parlor  I  have  before  described,  close  to 
the  chimney  corner,  where  a  bright  lively  fire  was  already  burn- 
ing, and  spreading  a  warm  cheerful  glow  through  the  apart- 
ment. 

The  large  round  table,  drawn  up  close  to  the  hearth,  was 
covered  with  a  clean  though  coarse  white  cloth,  and  laid  for 
breakfast,  with  two  cups  and  saucers,  flanked  by  as  many  plates 
and  egg-cups,  although  as  yet  no  further  preparations  for  the 
morning  meal,  except  the  presence  of  a  huge  home-made  loaf 
and  a  large  roll  of  rich  goklen-hued  butter,  had  been  made  by 
the  neat-handed  Phillis  of  the  country  inn.  Two  candles  were 
lighted,  for  though  the  clay  had  broken,  the  sun  was  not  yet 
high  enough  to  cast  his  rays  into  that  deep  and  rock-walled  val- 
ley, and  by  their  light  Archer  was  busy  with  the  game-bag,  the 
front  of  which  he  had  finished  netting  on  the  previous  night. 

Frank  Forester  had  not  as  yet  made  Irs  appearance  ;  and 
still,  while  the  gigantic  copper  kettle  bubbled  and  steamed  away 
upon  the  hearth,  discoursing  eloquent  music,  and  servant  after 
servant  bustled  in,  one  with  a  cold  quail-pie,  another  with  a 
quart  jug  of  cream,  and  fresh  eggs  ready  to  be  boiled  by  the 
fastidious  epicures  in  person,  he  steadily  worked  on,  housewife 
and  saddler's  silk,  and  wax  and  scissors  ready  to  his  hand;  and 
when  at  last  the  door  flew  open,  and  the  delinquent  comrade 
entered,  he  flung  his  finished  job  upon  the  chair,  and  gathered 
up  his  implements,  with 

"Now,  Frank,  let's  lose  no  time,  but  get  our  breakfasts. 


102  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

Halloa  !  Tim,  bring  the  rockingham  and  the  tea-chest ;  do  you 
hear!" 

"Well,  Harry,  so  you've  done  the  game-bag,"  exclaimed  the 
other,  as  he  lifted  it  up  and  eyed  it  somewhat  superciliously — 
"  Well,  it  is  a  good  one  certainly ;  but  you  are  the  queerest 
fellow  I  ever  met,  to  give  yourself  unnecessary  trouble.  Here 
you  have  been  three  days  about  this  bag,  hard  all ;  and  when 
it's  done,  it  is  not  half  as  good  a  one  as  you  can  buy  at  Cooper's 
for  a  dollar,  with  all  this  new-fangled  machinery  of  loops  and 
buttons,  and  I  don't  know  what." 

"  And  you,  Master  Frank,"  retorted  Harry,  nothing  daunted, 
"  to  be  a  good  shot  and  a  good  sportsman — which,  with  some 
few  exceptions,  I  must  confess  you  are — are  the  most  culpably 
and  wilfully  careless  about  your  appointments  I  ever  met.  I 
don't  call  a  man  half  a  sportsman,  who  has  not  every  thing  he 
wants  at  hand  for  an  emergency,  at  half  a  minute's  notice.  Now 
it  so  happens  that  you  cannot  get,  in  New  York  at  all,  anything 
like  a  decent  game-bag — a  little  fancy-worked  French  or  Ger- 
man jigmaree  machine  you  can  get  anywhere,  I  grant,  that  will 
do  well  enough  for  a  fellow  to  carry  on  his  shoulders,  who  goes 
out  robin-gunning,  but  nothing  for  your  man  to  carry,  wherein  to 
keep  your  birds  cool,  fresh,  and  unmutilated.  Now,  these  loops 
and  buttons,  at  which  you  laugh,  will  make  the  difference  of  a 
week  at  least  in  the  bird's  keeping,  if  every  hour  or  so  you 
empty  your  pockets — wherein  I  take  it  for  granted  you  put 
your  birds  as  fast  as  you  bag  them — smooth  down  their  plum- 
age gently,  stretch  their  legs  out,  and  hang  them  by  the  heads, 
running  the  button  down  close  to  the  neck  of  each.  In  this 
way  this  bag,  which  is,  as  you  see,  half  a  yard  long,  by  a  quar- 
ter and  a  half  a  quarter  deep,  made  double,  one  bag  of  fustian, 
with  a  net  front,  which  makes  two  pockets — will  carry  fifty-one 
quail  or  woodcock,  no  one  of  them  pressing  upon,  or  interfering 
with,  another,  and  it  would  carry  sixty-eight  if  I  had  put  ano- 
ther row  of  loops  in  the  inner  bag  ;  which  I  did  not,  that  I 
might  have  the  bottom  vacant  to  carry  a  few  spare  articles,  such 
as  a  bag  of  Westley  Richards'  caps,  and  a  couple  of  dozen  of 
Ely's  cartridges." 

"  Oh  !  that's  all  very  well,"  said  Frank,  "  but  who  the  deuce 
can  be  at  the  bore  of  it  ?" 

'•  Why  be  at  the  bore  of  shooting  at  all,  for  that  matter  ?" 
replied  Harry — "I,  for  one,  think  that  if  a  thing  is  worth  doing 
at  all,  it  is  worth  doing  well — and  I  can't  bear  to  kill  a  hundred 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  103 

or  a  hundred  and  fifty  birds>  as  our  party  almost  always  do  out 
here,  and  then  be  obliged  to  throw  them  away,  just  for  want  of 
a  little  care.  Why,  I  was  shooting  summer  cock  one  July  day 
two  years  ago — there  had  been  heavy  rain  in  the  early  morning, 
and  the  grass  and  bushes  were  very  wet — Jem  Blake  was  with 
me,  and  we  had  great  sport,  and  he  laughed  at  me  like  the 
deuce  for  taking  my  birds  out  of  my  pocket  at  the  end  of  every 
hour's  sport,  and  making  Timothy  smooth  them  down  carefully, 
and  bag  them  all  after  my  fashion.  Egad  I  had  the  laugh 
though,  when  we  got  home  at  night !" 

"  How  so,"  asked  Frank,  "  in  what  way  had  you  the  laugh  ?" 

"  Simply  in  this — a  good  many  of  the  birds  were  very  hard 
shot,  as  is  always  the  case  in  summer  shooting,  and  all  of  them 
got  more  or  less  wet,  as  did  the  pockets  of  Jem's  shooting  jacket, 
wherein  he  persisted  in  carrying  his  birds  all  day — the  end  was, 
that  when  we  got  home  at  night,  it  having  been  a  close,  hot, 
steamy  day,  he  had  not  one  bird  which  was  not  more  or  less 
tainted* — and,  as  you  know  of  course,  when  taint  has  once  be- 
gun, nothing  can  check  it." 

"  Ay  !  ay  !  well  that  indeed's  a  reason  ;  if  you  can't  buy 
such  a  bag,  especially  !" 

"  Well,  you  cannot  then,  I  can  tell  you  !  and  I'm  glad  you're 
convinced  for  once  ;  and  here  comes  breakfast — so  now  let  us  to 
work,  that  we  may  get  on  our  ground  as  early  as  may  be.  For 
quail  you  cannot  be  too  early ;  for  if  you  don't  find  them  while 
they  are  rambling  on  their  feeding  ground,  it  is  a  great  chance 
if  you  find  them  at  all." 

"  But,  after  all,  you  can  only  use  up  one  or  two  bevies  or  so  ; 
and,  that  done,  you  must  hunt  for  them  in  the  basking  time  of 
day,  after  all's  done  and  said,"  replied  Frank,  who  seemed  to 
have  got  up  somewhat  paradoxically  given  that  morning. 

"  Not  at  all,  Frank,  not  at  all,"  answered  Harry — u  that  is 
if  you  know  your  ground  ;  and  know  it  to  be  well  stocked  ;  and 
have  a  good  marker  with  you." 

"  Oh  !  this  is  something  new  of  yours — some  strange  device 
fantastical — let's  have  it,  pray." 

"  Certainly  you  shall ;  you  shall  have  it  now  in  precept,  and 
in  an  hour  or  two  in  practice.  You  see  those  stubbles  on  the 
hill — in  those  seven  or  eight  fields  there  are,  or  at  least  should 

*  This  is  a  fact— thirty  birds  were  thrown  away  at  night,  which  had 
beea  killed  that  same  day. 


104  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

be,  some  fire  bevies  ;  there  is  good  covert,  good  easy  covert  all 
about,  and  we  can  mark  our  birds  down  easily  ;  now,  when  I 
find  one  bevy,  I  shall  get  as  many  barrels  into  it  as  I  can,  mark 
it  down  as  correctly  as  possible,  and  then  go  and  look  for 
another." 

"  What !  and  not  follow  it  up  ?  Now,  Harry,  that's  mere 
stuff;  wait  till  the  scent's  gone  cold,  and  till  the  dogs  can't 
find  them  ?  'Gad,  that's  clever,  any  way  !" 

"  Exactly  the  reverse,  friend  Frank  ;  exactly  the  reverse.  If 
you  follow  up  a  bevy,  of  quail  mark  you,  on  the  instant,  it's 
ten  to  one  almost  that  you  don't  spring  them.  If,  on  the  con- 
trary, you  wait  for  half  an  hour,  you  are  sure  of  them.  How 
it  is,  I  cannot  precisely  tell  you.  I  have  sometimes  thought 
that  quail  have  the  power  of  holding  in  their  scent,  whether 
purposely  or  naturally — from  the  effect  of  fear  perhaps  con- 
tracting the  pores,  and  hindering  the  escape  of  the  effluvia — I 
know  not,  but  I  am  far  from  being  convinced  even  now  that  it 
is  not  so.  A  very  good  sportsman,  and  true  friend  of  mine, 
insists  upon  it  that  birds  give  out  no  scent  except  from  the  feet, 
and  that,  consequently,  if  they  squat  without  running  they  can- 
not be  found.  I  do  not,  however,  believe  the  theory,  and  hold 
it  to  be  disproved  by  the  fact  that  dead  birds  do  give  out  scent, 
I  have  generally  observed  that  there  is  no  difficulty  in  retrieving 
dead  quail,  but  that,  wounded,  they  are  constantly  lost.  But, 
be  that  as  it  may,  the  birds  pitch  down,  each  into  the  best  bit 
of  covert  he  can  find,  and  squat  there  like  so  many  stones,  leav- 
ing no  trail  or  taint  upon  the  grass  or  bushes,  and  being  of 
course  proportionally  hard  to  find ;  in  half  an  hour  they  will 
begin,  if  not  disturbed,  to  call  and  travel,  and  you  can  hunt 
them  up,  without  the  slightest  trouble.  If  you  have  a  very 
large  tract  of  country  to  beat,  and  birds  are  very  scarce,  of 
course  it  would  not  answer  to  pass  on  ;  nor  ever,  even  if  they 
are  plentiful,  in  wild  or  windy  weather,  or  in  large  open  woods  ; 
but  where  you  have  a  fair  ground,  lots  of  birds,  and  fine  weath- 
er, I  would  always  beat  on  in  a  circuit,  for  the  reason  I  have 
given  you.  In  the  first  place,  every  bevy  you  flush  flies  from 
its  feeding  to  its  basking  ground,  so  that  you  get  over  all  the 
first  early,  and  know  where  to  look  afterward;  instead  of  killing 
off  one  bevy,  and  then  going  blundering  on,  at  blind  guess 
work,  and  finding  nothing.  In  the  second  place,  you  have  a 
chance  of  driving  two  or  three  bevies  into  one  brake,  and  of 
getting  sport  proportionate ;  and  in  the  third  place,  as  I  have 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  105 

told  you,  you  are  much  surer  of  finding  marked  birds  after  an 
hour's  lapse,  than  on  the  moment." 

"  I  will  do  you  the  justice  to  say,"  Forester  replied,  "  that 
you  always  make  a  tolerably  good  fight  in  support  of  your 
opinions  ;  and  so  you  have  done  now,  but  I  want  to  hear  some- 
thing more  about  this  matter  of  holding  scent — facts  !  facts  ! 
and  let  me  judge  for  myself." 

"  Well,  Frank,  give  me  a  bit  more  of  that  pie  in  the  mean 
time,  and  I  will  tell  you  the  strongest  case  in  point  I  ever  wit- 
nessed. I  was  shooting  near  Stamford,  in  Connecticut,  three 

years  ago,  with  C K ,   and  another  friend ;  we  had 

three  as  good  dogs  out,  as  ever  had  a  trigger  drawn  over  them. 
My  little  imported  yellow  and  white  setter,  Chase,  after  which 
this  old  rascal  is  called — which  Mike  Sandford  considered  the 
best-nosed  dog  he  had  ever  broken — a  capital  young  pointer 
dog  of  K 's,  which  has  since  turned  out,  as  I  hear,  superla- 
tive, and  P 's  old  and  stanch  setter  Count.  It  was  the  mid- 
dle of  a  fine  autumn  day,  and  the  scenting  was  very  uncom- 
monly good.  One  of  our  beaters  flushed  a  bevy  of  quail  very 
wide  of  us,  and  they  came  over  our  heads  down  a  steep  hill- 
side, and  all  lighted  in  a  small  circular  hollow,  without  a  bit  of 
underbrush  or  even  grass,  full  of  tali  thrifty  oak  trees,  of  per- 
haps twenty-five  years'  growth.  They  were  not  much  out  of 
gun-shot,  and  we  all  three  distinctly  saw  them  light ;  and  I  ob- 
served them  flap  and  fold  their  wings  as  they  settled.  We 
walked  straight  to  the  spot,  and  beat  it  five  or  six  times  over, 
not  one  of  our  dogs  ever  drawing,  and  not  one  bird  rising.  We 
could  not  make  it  out ;  my  friends  thought  they  had  treed,  and 
laughed  at  me  when  I  expressed  my  belief  that  they  were  still 
before  us,  under  our  very  noses.  The  ground  was  covered  only 
by  a  deep  bed  of  sere  decaying  oak  leaves.  Well,  we  went  on, 
and  beat  all  round  the  neighborhood  within  a  quarter  of  a  mile, 
and  did  not  find  a  bird,  when  lo  !  at  the  end  of  perhaps  half 
an  hour,  we  heard  them  calling — followed  the  cry  back  to  that 
very  hollow ;  the  instant  we  entered  it,  all  the  three  dogs  made 
game,  drawing  upon  three  several  birds,  roaded  them  up,  and 
pointed  steady,  and  we  had  half  an  hour's  good  sport,  and  we 
were  all  convinced  that  the  birds  had  been  there  all  the  time.  I 
have  seen  many  instances  of  the  same  kind,  and  more  particu- 
larly with  wing-tipped  birds,  but  none  I  think  so  tangible  as 
this  I" 

5* 


106  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

"  Well,  I  am  not  a  convert,  Harry  ;  but,  as  the  Chancellor 
said,  I  doubt." 

"  And  that  I  consider  not  a  little,  from  such  a  positive  wretch 
as  you  are  ;  but  come,  we  have  done  breakfast,  and  it's  broad 
daylight.  Come,  Timothy,  on  with  the  bag  and  belts  ;  he 
breakfasted  before  we  had  got  up,  and  gave  the  dogs  a  bite*" 

"  Which  dogs  do  you  take,  Harry ;  and  do  you  use  cart- 
ridge ?" 

"  Oh  !  the  setters  for  the  morning  ;  they  are  the  only  fellows 
for  the  stubble  ;  we  should  be  all  day  with  the  cockers  ;  even 
setters,  as  we  must  break  them  here  for  wood  shooting,  have 
not  enough  of  speed  or  dash  for  the  open,  Cartridges  ?  yes  ! 
I  shall  use  a  loose  charge  in  my  right,  and  a  blue  cartridge  in 
my  left ;  later  in  the  season  I  use  a  blue  in  my  right  and  a  red 
in  my  left.  It  just  makes  the  difference  between  killing  with 
both,  or  with  one  barrel.  The  blue  kills  all  of  twenty,  and  the 
red  all  of  thirty-five  yards  further  than  loose  shot ;  and  they 
kill  dean  /" 

"  Yet  many  good  sportsmen  dislike  them,"  Frank  replied  ; 
"  they  say  they  ball  I" 

"  They  do  not  now,  if  you  load  with  them  properly ;  formerly 
they  would  do  so  at  times,  but  that  defect  is  now  rectified — - 
with  the  blue  and  red  cartridges  at  least — the  green,  which  are 
only  fit  for  wild-fowl,  or  deer-shooting,  will  do  so  sometimes, 
but  very  rarely ;  and  they  will  execute  surprisingly.  For  a  bad 
or  uncertain  rifle-shot,  the  green  cartridge,  with  SG  shot  is  the 
thing — twelve  good-sized  slugs,  propelled  with  force  enough  to 
go  through  an  inch  plank,  at  eighty  yards,  within  a  compass 
of  three  feet — but  no  wad  must  be  used,  either  upon  the  car- 
tridge or  between  that  and  the  powder ;  the  small  end  must  be 
inserted  downward,  and  the  cartridge  must  be  chosen  so  that 
the  wad  at  the  top  shall  fit  the  gun,  the  case  being  two  sizes 
less  than  the  calibre.  With  these  directions  no  man  need  make 
a  mistake ;  and,  if  he  can  cover  a  bird  fairly,  and  is  cool  enough 
not  to  fire  within  twenty  yards,  he  will  never  complain  of  car- 
tridges, after  a  single  trial.  Kemember,  too,  that  vice  versa  to 
the  rule  of  a  loose  charge,  the  heavier  you  load  with  powder, 
the  closer  will  your  cartridge  carry.  The  men  who  do  not  like 
cartridges  are — you  may  rely  upon  it — of  the  class  which  pre- 
fers scattering  guns.  I  always  use  them,  except  in  July  shoot- 
ing, and  I  shall  even  put  a  few  red  in  my  pockets,  in  case  the 
wind  should  get  up  in  the  afternoon.  Besides  which,  I  always 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  107 

take  along  two  buckshot  cartridges,  in  case  of  happening,  as 
Timothy  would  say,  on  some  big  varmint.  I  have  four  pockets 
in  my  shooting  waistcoat,  each  stitched  off  into  four  compartr 
merits — each  of  which  holds,  erect,  one  cartridge — you  cannot 
carry  them  loose  in  your  pocket,  as  they  are  very  apt  to  break. 
Another  advantage  of  this  is,  that  in  no  way  can  you  carry  shot 
with  so  little  inconvenience,  as  to  weight ;  besides  which,  you 
load  one  third  quicker,  and  your  gun  never  leads  !'J 

"  Well !  I  believe  I  will  take  some  to-day — but  don't  you 
wait  for  the  Commodore  ?'' 

"  No  !  He  drives  up,  as  I  told  you,  from  Nyack,  where  he 
lands  from  his  yacht,  and  will  be  here  at  twelve  o'clock  to 
luncheon  ;  if  he  had  been  coming  for  the  morning  shooting,  he 
would  have  been  here  ere  this.  By  that  time  we  shall  have 
bagged  twenty-five  or  thirty  quail,  and  a  ruffed  grouse  or  two ; 
besides  driving  two  or  three  bevies  down  into  the  meadows  and 
the  alder  bushes  by  the  stream,  which  are  quite  full  of  wood- 
cock. After  luncheon,  with  the  Commodore's  aid,  we  will  pick 
up  these  stragglers,  and  all  the  timber-doodles  !" 

In  another  moment  the  setters  were  unchained,  and  came 
careering,  at  the  top  of  their  speed,  into  the  breakfast  room, 
where  Harry  stood  before  the  fire,  loading  his  double  gun,  while 
Timothy  was  buttoning  on  his  left  leggin.  Frank,  meanwhile, 
had  taken  up  his  gun,  and  quietly  sneaked  out  of  the  door,  two 
flat  irregular  reports  explaining,  half  a  moment  after,  the  pur- 
port of  his  absence. 

"  Well,  now,  Frank,  that  is" — expostulated  Harry — "  that  is 
just  the  most  snobbish  thing  I  ever  saw  you  do ;  aint  you 
ashamed  of  yourself  now,  you  genuine  cockney!" 

"  Not  a  bit — my  gun  has  not  been  used  these  three  months, 
and  something  might  have  got  into  the  chamber  !" 

"  Something  might  not,  if  when  you  cleaned  it  last  you  had 
laid  a  wad  in  the  centre  of  a  bit  of  greased  rag  three  inches 
square  and  rammed  it  about  an  inch  down  the  barrel,  leaving 
the  ends  of  the  linen  hanging  out.  And  by  running  your  rod 
down  you  could  have  ascertained  the  fact,  without  unnecessarily 
fouling  your  piece.  A  gun  has  no  right  ever  to  miss  fire  now ; 
and  never  does,  if  you  use  Westley  Richards'  caps,  and  diamond 
gunpowder — putting  the  caps  on  the  last  thing — which  has  the 
further  advantage  of  being  much  the  safer  plan,  and  seeing  that 
the  powder  is  up  to  the  cones  before  you  do  so.  If  it  is  not  so, 
let  your  hammer  down,  and  give  a  smart  tap  to  the  under  side 


108  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

of  the  breech,  holding  it  uppermost,  and  you  will  never  need  a 
picker ;  or  at  least  almost  never.  Remember,  too,  that  the  best 
picker  in  the  world  is  a  strong  needle  headed  with  sealing  wax. 
And  now  that  you  have  finished  loading,  and  I  lecturing,  just 
jump  over  the  fence  to  your  right ;  and  that  footpath  will  bring 
us  to  the  stepping-stones  across  the  Ramapo.  By  Jove,  but  we 
shall  have  a  lovely  morning." 

He  did  so,  and  away  they  went,  with  the  dogs  folio  wing- 
steadily  at  the  heel,  crossed  the  small  river  dry-shod,  climbed 
up  the  wooded  bank  by  dint  of  hand  and  foot,  and  reached  the 
broad  brown  corn  stubble.  Harry,  however,  did  not  wave  his 
dogs  to  the  right-hand  and  left,  but  calling  them  in,  quietly 
plodded  along  the  headland,  and  climbed  another  fence,  and 
crossed  a  buckwheat  stubble,  still  without  beating  or  disturbing 
any  ground,  and  then  another  field  full  of  long  bents  and  rag- 
wort, an  old  deserted  pasture,  and  Frank  began  to  grumble, 
but  just  then  a  pair  of  bars  gave  access  to  a  wide  fifty  acre  lot, 
which  had  been  wheat,  the  stubble  standing  still  knee  deep,  and 
yielding  a  rare  covert. 

"  Now  we  are  at  the  far  end  of  our  beat,  and  we  have  got  the 
wind  too  in  the  dogs'  noses,  Master  Frank — and  so  hold  up, 
good  lads,"  said  Harry.  And  off  the  setters  shot  like  lightning, 
crossing  and  quartering  their  ground  superbly. 

"  There  !  there !  well  done,  old  Chase — a  dead  stiff  point 
already,  and  Shot  backing  him  as  steady  as  a  rail.  Step  up, 
Frank,  step  up  quietly,  and  let  us  keep  the  hill  of  them." 

They  came  up  close,  quite  close  to  the  stanch  dog,  and  then, 
but  not  till  then,  he  feathered  and  drew  on,  and  Shot  came 
crawling  up  till  his  nose  was  but  a  few  inches  in  the  rear  of 
Chase's,  whose  point  he  never  thought  of  taking  from  him. 
Now  they  are  both  upon  the  game.  See  how  they  frown  and 
slaver,  the  birds  are  close  below  their  noses. 

Whirr — r — r  !  "  There  they  go — a  glorious  bevy  !"  exclaimed 
Harry,  as  he  cocked  his  right  barrel  and  cut  down  the  old  cock 
bird,  which  had  risen  rather  to  his  right  hand,  with  his  loose 
charge — "  blaze  away,  Frank  !"  Bang — bang ! — and  two  more 
birds  came  fluttering  down,  and  then  he  pitched  his  gun  up  to 
his  eye  again,  and  sent  the  cartridge  after  the  now  distant  bevy, 
and  to  Frank's  admiration  a  fourth  bird  was  keeled  over  mo^t 
beautifully,  and  clean  killed,  while  crossing  to  the  right,  at 
forty-six  yards,  as  they  paced  it  afterward. 

"  Now  mark  !  mark,  Timothy — mark,  Frank  !"    And  shading 


WARWICK  WOODLANDS.  109 

their  eyes  from  the  level  sunbeams,  the  three  stood  gazing 
steadily  after  the  rapid  bevy.  They  cross  the  pasture,  skim 
very  low  over  the  brush  fence  of  the  cornfield — they  disappear 
behind  it — they  are  down  I  no  !  no  !  not  yet — they  are  just  skirt- 
ino*  the  summit  of  the  topped  maize  stalks — now  they  are  down 
indeed,  just  by  that  old  ruined  hovel,  where  the  cat-briers  and 
sumach  have  overspread  its-cellar  and  foundation  with  thick  un- 
derwood. And  all  the  while  the  sturdy  dogs  are  crouching  at 
their  feet  unmoving. 

"  Will  you  not  follow  those,  Harry  ?"  Forester  inquired — 
"  there  are  at  least  sixteen  of  them  !" 

"  Not  I,"  said  Archer,  "  not  I,  indeed,  till  I  have  beat  this 
fold — I  expect  to  put  up  another  bevy  among  those  little  crags 
there  in  the  corner,  where  the  red  cedars  grow — and  if  we  do, 
they  will  strike  down  the  fence  of  the  buckwheat  stubble — that 
stubble  we  must  make  good,  and  the  rye  beside  it,  and  drive, 
if  possible,  all  that  we  find  before  us  to  the  corn  field.  Don't 
be  impatient,  and  you'll  see  in  time  that  I  am  in  the  right." 

No  more  words  were  now  wasted  ;  the  four  birds  were  bagged 
without  trouble,  and  the  sportsmen  being  in  the  open,  were  hand- 
ed over  on  the  spot  to  Tim  ;  who  stroked  their  freckled  breasts, 
and  beautifully  mottled  wing-coverts  and  backs,  with  a  caress- 
ing touch,  as  though  he  loved  them  ;  and  finally,  in  true  Jack 
Ketch  style,  tucked  them  up  severally  by  the  neck.  Archer  was 
not  mistaken  in  his  prognostics — another  bevy  had  run  into  the 
dwarf  cedars  from  the  stubble  at  the  sound  of  the  firing,  and 
were  roaded  up  in  right  good  style,  first  one  dog,  and  then  the 
other,  leading  ;  but  without  any  jealousy  or  haste. 

They  had,  however,  run  so  far,  that  they  had  got  wild,  and, 
as  there  was  no  bottom  covert  on  the  crags,  had  traversed  them 
quite  over  to  the  open,  on  the  far  side — and,  just  as  Archer  was 
in  the  act  of  warning  Forester  to  hurry  softly  round  and  head 
them,  they  flushed  at  thirty  yards,  and  had  flown  some  five 
more  before  they  were  in  sight,  the  feathery  evergreens  for  a 
while  cutting  off  the  view — the  dogs  stood  dead  at  the  sound 
of  their  wings.  Then,  as  they  came  in  sight,  Harry  discharged 
both  barrels  very  quickly — the  loose  shot  first,  which  evidently 
took  effect,  for  one  bird  cowered  and  seemed  about  to  fall,  but 
gathered  wing  again,  and  went  on  for  the  present — the  cartridge, 
which  went  next,  although  the  bevy  had  flown  ten  yards  fur- 
ther, did  its  work  clean,  and  stopped  its  bird.  Frank  fired  but 
once,  and  killed,  using  his  cartridge  first,  and  thinking  it  in  vain 


110  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

to  fire  the  loose  shot.  The  remaining  birds  skimmed  down  the 
hill,  and  lighted  in  the  thick  bushy  hedge-row,  as  Archer  had 
foreseen. 

"  So  much  for  Ely  !"  exclaimed  Harry — "  had  we  both  used 
two  of  them,  we  should  have  bagged  four  then.  As  it  is,  I 
have  killed  one  which  we  shall  not  get ;  a  thing  that  I  most 
particularly  hate." 

"  That  bird  will  rise  again,''  said  Frank. 

"  Never!"  replied  the  other,  "  he  has  one,  if  not  two,  shot  in 
him,  well  forward — if  I  am  not  much  mistaken,  before  the  wing 
— he  is  dead  now  !  but  let  us  on.  These  we  must  follow,  for 
they  are  on  our  line ;  you  keep  this  side  the  fence,  and  I  will 
cross  it  with  the  dogs — come  with  me,  Timothy." 

In  a  few  minutes  more  there  was  a  dead  point  at  the  hedge- 
row. 

"  Look  to,  Frank  !" 

"  Ay !  ay  !  Poke  them  out,  Tim  ;"  then  followed  sundry 
bumps  and  threshings  of  the  briers,  and  out  with  a  noisy  flutter 
burst  two  birds  under  Forester's  nose.  Bang  !  bang  ! 

"  The  first  shot  too  quick,  altogether,"  muttered  Archer ; 
"Ay,  he  has  missed  one  ;  mark  it,  Tim — there  he  goes  down  in 
the  corn,  by  jingo — you've  got  that  bird,  Frank  !  That's  well ! 
Hold  up,  Shot" — another  point  within  five  yards.  "  Look  out 
again,  Frank." 

But  this  time  vainly  did  Tim  poke,  and  thrash,  and  peer  into 
the  bushes — yet  still  Shot  stood,  stiff  as  a  marble  statue — then 
Chase  drew  up  and  snuffed  about,  and  pushed  his  head  and 
fore-legs  into  the  matted  briers,  and  thereupon  a  muzzling  noise 
ensued,  and  forthwith  out  he  came,  mouthing  a  dead  bird, 
warm  still,  and  bleeding  from  the  neck  and  breast. 

"  Frank,  he  has  got  my  bird — and  shot,  just  as  I  told  you, 
through  the  neck  and  near  the  great  wing  joint — good  dog  I 
good  dog  !" 

"  The  devil  1" 

"  Yes,  the  devil !  but  look  out  man,  here  is  yet  one  more 
point ;"  and  this  time  ten  or  twelve  birds  flushed  upon  Archer's 
side ;  he  slew,  as  usual,  his  brace,  and  as  they  crossed,  at  long 
distance,  Frank  knocked  down  one  more — the  rest  flew  to  the 
corn-field. 

In  the  middle  of  the  buckwheat  they  flushed  another,  and,  in 
the  rye,  another  bevy,  both  of  which  crossed  the  stream,  and 
settled  down  among  the  alders.  They  reached  the  corn-field, 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  HI 

and  picked  Up  their  birds  there,  quite  as  fast  as  Frank  himself 
desired — three  ruffed  grouse  they  had  bagged,  and  four  rabbits, 
in  a  small  dingle  full  of  thorns,  before  they  reached  the  corn ; 
and  just  as  the  tin  horns  were  sounding  for  noon  and  dinner 
from  many  a  neighboring  farm,  they  bagged  their  thirty-fourth 
quail.  At  the  same  moment,  the  rattle  of  a  distant  wagon  on 
the  hard  road,  and  a  loud  cheer  replying  to  the  last  shot,  an- 
nounced the  Commodore ;  who  pulled  up  at  the  tavern  door  just 
as  they  crossed  the  stepping-stones,  having  made  a  right  good 
morning's  work,  with  a  dead  certainty  of  better  sport  in  the 
afternoon,  since  they  had  marked  two  untouched  bevies,  thirty- 
five  birds  at  least,  beside  some  ten  or  twelve  more  stragglers 
into  the  alder  brakes,  which  Harry  knew  to  hold — moreover, 
thirty  woodcock,  as  he  said,  at  the  fewest. 

"  Well !  Harry,"  exclaimed  Frank,  as  he  set  down  his  gun, 
and  sat  down  to  the  table,  "I  must  for  once  knock  under — 
practice  has  borne  out  your  precepts" 


THE  WOODCOCK. 

LUNCHEON  was  soon  discussed,  a  noble  cold  quail  pie  and  a 
spiced  round  of  beef,  which  formed  the  most  essential  parts 
thereof,  displaying  in  their  rapidly  diminished  bulk  ocular  evi- 
dence of  the  extent  of  sportinen's  appetites ;  a  single  glass  of 
shrub  and  water  followed,  cheroots  were  lighted,  and  forth  the 
comrades  sallied,  the  Commodore  inquiring  as  they  went  what 
were  the  prospects  of  success. 

"  You  fellows/'  he  concluded,  "  have,  I  suppose,  swept  the 
ground  completely." 

"  That  you  shall  see  directly,"  answered  Archer ;  "  I  shall 
make  you  no  promises.  But  see  how  evidently  Grouse  recol- 
lects those  dogs  of  mine,  though  it  is  nearly  a  year  since  they 
have  met ;  don't  you  think  so,  A >?" 

"  To  be  sure  I  do,"  replied  the  Commodore  ;  "  I  saw  it  the 
first  moment  you  came  up — had  they  been  strangers  he  would 
have  tackled  them  upon  the  instant ;  and  instead  of  that  he  be- 
gan wagging  his  tail,  and  wriggling  about,  and  playing  with 
them.  Oh !  depend  upon  it,  dogs  think,  and  remember,  and 
reflect  far  more  than  we  imagine — " 


112  WARWICK  WOODLANDS. 

"Oh!  run  back,  Timothy — run  back!"  here  Archer  inter- 
rupted him — "  we  don't  want  you  this  afternoon.  Harness  the 
nags  and  pack  the  wagon,  and  put  them  to,  at  five — we  shall 
be  at  home  by  then,  for  we  intend  to  be  at  Tom's  to-night. 
Now  look  out,  Frank,  those  three  last  quail  we  marked  in  from 
the  hill  dropped  in  the  next  field,  where  the  ragwort  stands  so 
thick ;  and  five  to  one,  as  there  is  a  thin  growth  of  brushwood 
all  down  this  wall  side,  they  will  have  run  down  hither.  Why, 
man  alive !  you've  got  no  copper  caps  on  !" 

"  By  George  !  no  more  I  have — 1  took  them  off  when  I  laid 
down  my  gun  in  the  house,  and  forgot  to  repliice  them.'' 

"  And  a  very  dangerous  thing  you  did  in  taking  them  off, 
permit  me  to  assure  you.  Any  one  but  a  fool,  or  a  very  young 
child,  knows  at  once  that  a  gun  with  caps  on  is  loaded.  You 
leave  yours  on  the  table  without  caps,  and  in  comes  some  med- 
dling chap  or  other,  puts  on  one  to  try  the  locks,  or  to  frighten 
his  sweetheart,  or  for  some  other  no  less  sapient  purpose,  and 
off  it  goes  !  and  if  it  kill  no  one,  it's  God's  mercy  !  Never  do 
that  again,  Frank  !" 

Meanwhile  they  had  arrived  within  ten  yards  of  the  low 
rickety  stone  Avail,  skirted  by  a  thin  fringe  of  saplings,  in  which 
Archer  expected  to  find  game — Grouse,  never  in  what  might  be 
called  exact  command,  had  disappeared  beyond  it. 

"  Hold  up,  good  dogs  !"  cried  Harry,  and  as  he  spoke  away 
went  Shot  and  Chase — the  red  dog,  some  three  yards  ahead, 
jumped  on  the  wall,  and,  in  the  act  of  bounding  over  it,  saw 
Grouse  at  point  beyond.  Rigid  as  stone  he  stood  upon  that 
tottering  ridge,  one  hind  foot  drawn  up  in  the  act  of  pointing, 
for  both  the  fore  were  occupied  in  clinging  to  some  trivial  ine- 
qualities of  the  rough  coping,  his  feathery  flag  erect,  his  black 
eye  fixed,  and  his  lip  slavering  ;  for  so  hot  was  the  scent  that  it 
reached  his  exquisitely  fashioned  organs,  though  Grouse  was 
many  feet  advanced  between  him  and  the  game.  Shot  backed 
at  the  wall-foot,  seeing  the  red  dog  only,  and  utterly  uncon- 
scious that  the  pointer  had  made  the  game  beyond. 

"By  Jove!  but  that  is  beautiful !"  exclaimed  the  Commo- 
dore. "  That  is  a  perfect  picture  ! — the  very  perfection  of 
steadiness  and  breaking." 

They  crossed  the  wall,  and  poor  Shot,  in  the  rear,  saw  them 
no  more  ;  his  instinct  strongly,  aye  !  naturally,  tempted  him  to 
break  in,  but  second  nature,  in  the  shape  of  discipline,  prevailed  ; 
and,  though  he  trembled  with  excitement,  he  moved  not  an  inch. 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  113 

Grouse  was  as  firm  as  iron,  his  nose  within  six  inches  of  a  bunch 
of  wintergreen,  pointed  directly  downward,  and  his  head  cocked 
a  little  on  one  side — they  stepped  up  to  him,  and,  still  on  the 
wall-top,  Chase  held  to  his  uneasy  attitude. 

"  Now,  then,"  said  Harry,  "  look  out,  till  I  kick  him  up." 

No  sooner  said  than  done — the  toe  of  his  thick  shooting-boot 
crushed  the  slight  evergreen,  and  out  whirred,  with  his  white 
chaps  and  speckled  breast  conspicuous,  an  old  cock  quail.  He 
rose  to  Forester,  but  ere  that  worthy  had  even  cocked  his  gun 
— for  he  had  now  adopted  Archer's  plan,  and  carried  his  piece 
always  at  half  cock,  till  needed — flew  to  the  right  across  the 
Commodore ;  so  Frank  released  his  hammer  and  brought  down 

his  Manton,  while  A deliberately  covered,  and  handsomely 

cut  down  the  bird  at  h've-and-twenty  yards. 

Grouse  made  a  movement  to  run  in,  but  came  back  instantly 
when  called. 

"  Just  look  back,  if  you  please,  one  moment,  before  loading,'* 
said  Harry,  "  for  that  down-charge  is  well  worth  looking  at." 

And  so  indeed  it  was — for  there,  upon  the  wall-top,  where  he 
had  been  balancing,  Chase  had  contrived  to  lie  down  at  the 
gunshot — wagging  his  stern  slightly  to  and  fro,  with  his  white 
fore-paws  hanging  down,  and  his  head  couched  between  them, 
his  haunches  propped  up  on  the  coping  stone,  and  his  whole  at- 
titude apparently  untenable  for  half  a  minute. 

"  Now,  load  away  for  pity's  sake,  as  quickly  as  you  can  ;  that 
posture  must  be  any  thing  but  pleasant." 

This  was  soon  done ;  inasmuch  as  the  Commodore  is  not  ex- 
actly one  'to  dally  in  such  matters  ;  and  when  his  locks  ticked, 
as  he  drew  the  hammers  to  half-cock,  Chase  quietly  dismounted 
from  his  perch,  and  Shot's  head  and  fore-paws  appeared  above 
the  barrier  ;  but  not  till  Archer's  hand  gave  the  expected  signal 
did  the  stanch  brutes  move  on. 

u  Come,  Shot,  good  dog — it  is  but  fair  you  should  have  some 
part  of  the  fun  !  Seek  dead  !  seek  dead  !  that's  it,  sir  !  Toho  ! 
steady  !  Fetch  him,  good  lad  !  Well  done  !" 

In  a  few  minutes'  space,  four  or  five  more  birds  came  to 
bag — they  had  run,  at  the  near  report,  up  the  wall  side  among 
the  bushes,  and  the  dogs  footed  them  along  it,  now  one  and 
now  another  taking  the  lead  successively,  but  without  any  eager- 
ness or  raking — looking  round  constantly,  each  to  observe  his 
comrades'  or  his  master's  movements,  and  pointing  slightly,  but 

.  • 


114  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

not  steadily,  at  every  foot,  till  at  the  last  all  three,  in  different 
places,  stood  almost  simultaneously — all  three  dead  points. 

One  bird  jumped  up  to  Frank,  which  he  knocked  over.  A 
double  shot  fell  to  the  Commodore,  who  held  the  centre  of  the 
line,  and  dropped  both  cleverly — the  second,  a  long  shot,  wing- 
tipped  only.  Harry  flushed  three  and  killed  two  clean,  both 
within  thirty  paces,  and  then  covered  the  third  bird  with  his 
empty  barrels — but,  though  no  shot  could  follow  from  that 
quarter,  he  was  not  to  escape  scot  free,  for  wheeling  short  to  the 
left  hand,  and  flying  high,  he  crossed  the  Commodore  in  easy 
distance,  and  afterward  gave  Forester  a  chance. 

44 Try  him,  Frank,"  halloaed   Archer — and  "It's  no  .use!" 

cried  A ,  almost  together,  just  as  he  raised  his  gun,  and 

levelled  it  a  good  two  feet  before  the  quail. 

But  it  was  use,  and  Harry's  practised  eye  had  judged  the 
distance  more  correctly  than  the  short  sight  of  the  Commodore 
permitted — the  bird  quailed  instantly  as  the  shot  struck,  but 
flew  on  notwithstanding,  slanting  down  wind,  however,  towards 
the  ground,  and  falling  on  the  hill-side  at  a  full  hundred  yards. 

"  We  shall  not  get  him,"  Forester  exclaimed ;  4:  and  I  am 
sorry  for  it,  since  it  was  a  good  shot." 

"  A  right  good  shot,"  responded  Harry,  "and  we  shall  get 
him.  He  fell  quite  dead ;  I  saw  him  bounce  up,  like  a  ball,  when 

he  struck  the  hard  ground.     But  A 's  second  bird  is  only 

wing-tipped,  and  I  don't  think  we  shall  get  him  ;  for  the  ground 
where  he  fell  is  very  tussocky  and  full  of  grass,  and  if  he  creeps 
in,  as  they  mostly  will  do,  into  some  hole  in  the  bog-ground,  it 
is  ten  to  one  against  the  best  dog  in  America !" 

And  so  it  came  to  pass,  for  they  did  bag  Forester's,  and  all 
the  other  quail  except  the  Commodore's,  which,  though  the 
dogs  trailed  him  well,  and  worked  like  Trojans,  they  could  not 
for  their  lives  make  out. 

After  this  little  rally  they  went  down  to  the  alders  by  the 
stream-side,  and  had  enough  to  do,  till  it  was  growing  rapidly 
too  dark  to  shoot — for  the  woodcock  were  very  plentiful — it 
was  sweet  ground,  too,  not  for  feeding  only,  but  for  lying,  and 
that,  as  Harry  pointed  out,  is  a  great  thfng  in  the  autumn. 

The  grass  was  short  and  still  rich  under  foot,  although  it 
froze  hard  every  night ;  but  all  along  the  brook's  marge  there 
were  many  small  oozy  bubbling  springlets,  which  it  required  a 
stinging  night  to  congeal ;  and  round  these  the  ground  was 
poached  up  by  the  cattle,  and  laid  bare  in  spots  of  deep,  soft, 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  115 

black  loam  ;  and  the  innumerable  chalkings  told  the  experienced 
eye  at  half  a  glance,  that,  where  they  laid  up  for  the  night  so- 
ever, here  was  their  feeding  ground,  and  here  it  had  been 
through  the  autumn. 

But  this  was  not  all,  for  at  every  ten  or  twenty  paces  was  a 
dense  tuft  of  willow  bushes,  growing  for  the  most  part  upon  the 
higher  knolls  where  it  was  dry  and  sunny,  their  roots  heaped 
round  with  drift  wood,  from  the  decay  of  which  had  shot  up  a 
dense  tangled  growth  of  cat-briers.  In  these  the  birds  were  ly- 
ing, all  but  some  five  or  six  which  had  run  out  to  feed,  and 
were  flushed,  fat,  and  large,  and  lazy,  quite  in  the  open  meadow. 

kt  They  stay  here  later,"  Harry  said,  as  they  bagged  the  last 
bird,  which,  be  it  observed,  was  the  twenty-seventh,  "'  than  any 
where  I  know.  Here  I  have  killed  them  when  there  was  ice 
thicker  than  a  dollar  on  all  the  waters  round  about,  and  when 
you  might  see  a  thin  and  smoke-like  mist  boiling  up  from  each 
springlet.  Kill  them  all  off  to-day,  and  you  will  find  a  dozen 
fresh  birds  here  to-morrow,  and  so  on  for  a  fortnight — they 
come  down  from  the  high  ground  as  it  gets  too  cold  for  them 
to  endure  their  high  and  raritied  atmosphere,  and  congregate 
hither!" 

"  And  why  not  more  in  number  at  a  time  ?"  asked  A . 

"  Ay  !  there  we  are  in  the  dark — we  do  not  know  sufficiently 
the  habits  of  the  bird  to  speak  with  certainty.  I  do  not  think 
they  are  pugnacious,  and  yet  you  never  find  more  on  a  feeding 
ground  than v  it  will  well  accommodate  for  many  days,  nay 
weeks,  together.  One  might  imagine  that  their  migrations 
would  be  made  en  masse,  that  all  the  birds  upon  these  neighbor- 
ing hills  would  crowd  down  to  this  spot  together,  and  feed  here 
till  it  was  exhausted,  and  then  on — but  this  is  not  so  !  I  know 
fifty  small  spots  like  this,  each  a  sure  find  in  the  summer  for 
three  or  four  broods,  say  from  eight  to  twelve  birds.  During 
the  summer,  when  you  have  killed  the  first  lot,  no  more  return 
— but  the  moment  the  frost  begins,  there  you  will  find  them — 
never  exceeding  the  original  eight  or  ten  in  number,  but  keep- 
ing up  continually  to  that  mark — and  whether  you  kill  none  at 
all,  or  thirty  birds  a  week,  there  you  will  always  find  about  that 
number,  and  in  no  case  any  more.  Those  that  are  killed  oft' 
are  supplied,  within  two  days  at  farthest,  by  new  comers ;  yet, 
so  far  as  I  can  judge,  the  original  birds,  if  not  killed,  hold  their 
own,  unmolested  by  intruders.  Whence  the  supplies  come  in — 
for  they  must  be  near  neighbors  by  the  rapidity  of  their  succes- 


116  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

sion — and  why  they  abstain  from  their  favorite  grounds  in 
worse  locations,  remains,  and  I  fear  we  must  remain,  in  the 
dark.  All  the  habits  of  the  woodcock  are,  indeed,  very  partial- 
ly and  slightly  understood.  They  arrive  here,  and  breed  early 
in  the  spring — sometimes,  indeed,  before  the  snow  is  off  the 
hills — get  their  young  off  in  June,  and  with  their  young  are 
most  unmercifully,  most  urisportsmanly,  thinned  off,  when  they 
can  hardly  fly — such  is  the  error,  as  I  think  it,  of  the  law — but 
I  could  not  convince  my  stanch  friends,  Philo,  and  J.  Cypress,  Jr., 
of  the  fact,  when  they  bestirred  themselves  in  favor  of  the  pro- 
geny of  their  especial  favorites,  perdix  virginiana  and  tetrad 
umbellus,  and  did  defer  the  times  for  slaying  them  legitimately 
to  such  a  period,  that  it  is  in  fact  next  to  impossible  to  kill  the 
latter  bird  at  all.  But  vainly  did  I  plead,  and  a  false  advocate 
was  Cypress  after  all,  despite  his  nominal  friendship,  for  that 
unhappy  Scolopax,  who  in  July  at  least  deserves  his  nickname 
minor,  or  the  infant.  For,  setting  joke  apart,  what  a  burning 
shame  it  is  to  murder  the  poor  little  half-fledged  younglings  in 
July,  when  they  will  scarcely  weigh  six  ounces  ;  when  they  will 
drop  again  within  ten  paces  of  the  dog  that  flushes,  or  the  gun 
that  misses  them  ;  and  when  the  heat  will  not  allow  you  even 
to  enjoy  the  consummation  of  their  slaughter.  Look  at  these 
fellows  now,  with  their  gray  foreheads,  their  plump  ruddy 
breasts,  their  strong,  well-feathered  pinions,  each  one  ten  ounces 
at  the  least.  Think  how  these  jolly  old  cocks  tower  away,  with 
their  shrill  whistle,  through  the  tree-tops,  and  twist  and  dodge 
with  an  agility  of  wing  and  thought-like  speed,  scarcely  inferior 
to  the  snipe's  or  swallow's,  and  fly  a  half  mile  if  you  miss  them  ; 
and  laugh  to  scorn  the  efforts  of  any  one  to  bag  them,  who  is 
not  an  out-and-outer  !  No  chance  shot,  no  stray  pellet  speaks 
for  these — it  must  be  the  charge,  the  whole  charge,  and  nothing 
but  the  charge,  which  will  cut  down  the  grown  bird  of  October  ! 
The  law  should  have  said  woodcock  thou  shall  not  kill  until 
September ;  quail  thou  shalt  not  kill  till  October,  the  twenty- 
fifth  if  you  please ;  partridge  thou  shalt  kill  in  all  places,  and 
at  all  times,  when  thou  canst !  and  that,  as  we  know,  Frank, 
and  A ,  that  is  not  everywhere  or  often." 

"  But,  seriously,"  said  the  Commodore,  "  seriously,  would  you 
indeed  abolish  summer  shooting  ?" 

"  Most  seriously  !  most  solemnly  I  would  !"  Archer  responded. 
"  In  the  first  place  because,  as  I  have  said,  it  is  a  perfect  sin  to 
shoot  cock  in  July ;  and  secondly,  because  no  one  would,  I  am 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  117 

convinced,  shoot  for  his  own  pleasure  at  that  season,  if  it  were 
not  a  question  of  now  or  never.  Between  the  intense  heat,  and 
the  swarms  of  musquitoes,  and  the  unfitness  of  that  season  for 
the  dogs,  which  can  rarely  scent  their  game  half  the  proper 
distance,  and  the  density  of  the  leafy  coverts ;  and  lastly,  the 
difficulty  of  keeping  the  game  fresh  till  you  can  use  it,  render 
July  shooting  a  toil,  in  my  opinion,  rather  than  a  real  pleasure ; 
although  we  are  such  hunting  creatures,  that  rather  than  not 
have  our  prey  at  all,  we  will  pursue  it  in  all  times,  and  through 
all  inconveniences.  Fancy,  my  dear  fellows,  only  fancy  what 
superb  shooting  we  should  have  if  not  a  bird  were  killed  till 
they  were  all  full  grown,  and  fit  to  kill ;  fancy  bagging  a  hun- 
dred and  twenty-five  fall  woodcock  in  a  single  autumn  day,  as 
we  did  this  very  year  on  a  summer's  day  !" 

"  Oh  !  I  agree  with  you  completely,"  said  Frank  Forester, 
"  but  I  am  afraid  such  a  law  will  never  be  brought  to  bear  in 
this  country — the  very  day  on  which  cock  shooting  does  not 
really  begin,  but  is  supposed  by  nine  tenths  of  the  people  to 
begin — the  fourth  of  July  is  against  it.*  Moreover,  the  amateur 
killers  of  game  are  so  very  few,  in  comparison  with  the  amateur 
eaters  thereof,  that  it  is  all  but  impossible  to  enforce  the  laws  at 
all  upon  this  subject.  Woodcock  even  now  are  eaten  in  June 
— nay,  I  have  heard,  and  believe  it  to  be  true,  that  many  hotels 
in  New  York  serve  them  up  even  in  March  and  April ;  quail, 
this  autumn,  have  been  sold  openly  in  the  markets,  many  days 
previous  to  the  expiration  of  close  time.  And,  in  fact,  sorry  I 
am  to  say  it,  as  far  as  eating-houses  are  in  question,  the  game 
laws  are  nearly  a  dead  letter. 

"  In  the  country,  also,  I  have  universally  found  it  to  be  the 
case,  that  although  the  penalty  of  a  breach  may  be  exacted 
from  strangers,  no  farmer  will  differ  with  a  neighbor,  as  they 
call  it,  for  the  sake  of  a  bird.  Whether  time,  and  a  greater 
diffusion  of  sporting  propensities,  and  sporting  feelings,  may 
alter  this  for  the  better  or  no,  I  leave  to  sager  and  more  politic 
pates  than  mine.  And  now  I  say,  Harry,  you  surely  do  not  in- 
tend to  trundle  us  off  to  Tom  Draw's  to-night  without  a  drink 
at  starting  ?  I  see  Timothy  has  got  the  drag  up  to  the  door, 
and  the  horses  harnessed,  and  all  ready  for  a  start." 

*  In  the  State  of  New  York  close  time  for  woodcock  expires  on  the  last 
day  of  June — in  New  Jersey  on  the  fourth  of  July — leaving  the  bird 
lawful  prey  on  the  1st  and  the  5th,  respectively. 


118  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

"  Yes  !  yes  !  all  that's  true,"  answered  Harry,  "  but  take  my 
word  for  it,  the  liquor  case  is  not  put  in  yet.  Well,  Timothy," 
he  went  on,  as  they  reached  the  door,  "  that  is  right.  Have 
you  got  everything  put  up  3" 

"  All  but  t'  gam'  bag  and  t'  liquor  ca-ase,  sur,"  Tim  replied, 
touching  his  hat  gnostically  as  he  spoke  ;  "  Ay  reckoned  pie- 
ease  sur,  'at  you'd  maybe  want  to  fill  t'  yan  oop,  and  empty  t' 
oother  !" 

"  Very  well  thought,  indeed  !''  said  Archer,  winking  to  Fores- 
ter the  while.  "  Let  that  boy  stand  a  few  minutes  to  the  hor- 
ses' heads,  and  come  into  the  house  yourself  and  pack  the  birds 
up,  and  fetch  us  some  water." 

u  T'  watter  is  upon  t'  table,  sur,  and  t'  cigars,  and  a  loight ; 
but  Ay'se  be  in  \vi'  you  directly.  Coom  hither,  lad,  till  Ay 
shew  thee  hoo  to  guide  'em  ;  thou  rnunna  tooch  t'  bits  for  the 
loife  o'  thee,  but  joost  stan'  there  .anent  them — if  they  stir 
loike,  joost  speak  to  'em — Ayse  hear  thee  !"  and  he  left  his 
charge  and  entered  the  small  parlor,  where  the  three  friends 
were  now  assembled,  with  a  cheroot  apiece  already  lighted,  and 
three  tall  brimming  rummers  on  the  table. 

"  Look  sharp  and  put  the  birds  up,"  said  Harry,  pitching,  as 
he  spoke,  the  fine  fat  fellows  right  and  left  out  of  his  wide 
game  pockets,  "  and  when  that's  done  fill  yourself  out  a  drink, 
and  help  us  on  with  our  great  coats." 

"  What  are  you  going  to  do  with  the  guns  ?"  inquired  the 
Commodore. 

"To  carry  them  uncased  and  loaded  ;  substituting  in  my  own 
two  buckshot  cartridges  for  loose  shot,"  replied  Archer.  "  The 
Irish  are  playing  the  very  devil  through  this  part  of  the  coun- 
try— we  are  close  to  the  line  of  the  great  Erie  railroad — and 
they  are  murdering,  and  robbing,  and  I  know  not  what,  for 
miles  around.  The  last  time  I  was  at  old  Tom's  he  told  me 
that  but  ten  days  or  a  fortnight  previously  a  poor  Irish  woman, 
who  lived  in  his  village,  started  to  pay  a  visit  to  her  mother  by 
the  self  same  road  we  shall  pass  to-night ;  and  was  found  the 
next  morning  with  her  person  brutally  abused,  kneeling  against 
a  fence  stone  dead,  strangled  with  her  own  cambric  handkerchief. 
He  says,  too,  that  not  a  week  passes  but  some  of  them  are  found 
dead  in  the  meadows,  or  in  the  ditches,  killed  in  some  lawless 
fray  ;  and  no  one  ever  dreams  of  taking  any  notice,  or  making 
any  inquiry  about  the  matter !" 

"Is  it  possible?  then  keep  the  guns  at  hand  by  all  means !" 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  110 

"  Yes !  but  this  time  we  will  violate  my  rule  about  the  cop- 
per caps — there  is  no  rule,  you  are  aware,  but  what  has  some 
exception — and  the  exception  to  this  of  mine  is,  always  take 
off  your  copper  caps  before  getting  into  a  wagon  ;  the  jar  will 
occasionally  explode  them,  an  upset  will  undoubtedly.  So  un- 
cap, Messrs.  Forester  and  A ,  and  put  the  bright  little  ex- 
ploders into  your  pockets,  where  they  will  be  both  safe  and 
handy !  And  now,  birds  are  in,  drinks  are  in,  dogs  and  guns 
are  in,  and  now  let  us  be  off!" 

No  more  words  were  wasted  ;  the  landlord's  bill  was  paid, 
Frank  Forester  and  Timothy  got  up  behind,  the  Commodore 
took  the  front  seat,  Harry  sprang,  reins  in  hand,  to  the  box,  and 
off  they  bowled,  with  lamps  and  cigars  burning  merrily,  for  it 
was  now  quite  dark,  along  the  well-known  mountain  road,  which 
Archer  boasted  he  could  drive  as  safely  in  the  most  gloomy 
night  of  winter  as  in  a  summer  noon.  And  so  it  proved  this 
time,  for  though  he  piloted  his  horses  with  a  cool  head  and 
delicate  finger  through  every  sort  of  difficulty  that  a  road  can 
offer,  up  long  and  toilsome  hills  without  a  rail  between  the  nar- 
row track  and  the  deep  precipice,  down  sharp  and  stony  pitches, 
over  loose  clattering  bridges,  along  wet  marshy  levels,  he  never 
seemed  in  doubt  or  trouble  for  a  moment,  but  talked  and  laughed 
away,  as  if  he  were  a  mere  spectator. 

After  they  had  gone  a  few  miles  on  their  way — "  you  broke 
off  short,  Archer,'*  said  the  Commodore,  "in  the  middle  of  your 
dissertation  on  the  natural  history  and  habits  of  the  woodcock, 
turning  a  propos  des  bottes  to  the  cruelty  of  killing  them  in 
midsummer.  In  all  which,  by  the  way,  I  quite  agree  with  you. 
But  I  don't  want  to  lose  the  rest  of  your  lucubrations  on  this 
most  interesting  topic.  What  do  you  think  becomes  of  the 
birds  in  August,  after  the  moult  begins  ?" 

"  Verily,  Commodore,  that  is  a  positive  poser.  Many  good 
sportsmen  believe  that  they  remain  where  they  were  before ; 
getting  into  the  thickest  and  wettest  brakes,  refusing  to  rise  be- 
fore the  dog,  and  giving  out  little  or  no  scent !" 

"  Do  you  believe  this  ?" 

"  No ;  I  believe  there  is  a  brief  migration,  but  whither  I  can- 
not tell  you  with  any  certainty.  Some  birds  do  stay,  as  they 
assert ;  and  that  a  few  do  stay,  and  do  give  out  enough  scent  to 
enable  dogs  to  find  them,  is  a  proof  to  me  that  all  do  not.  A 
good  sportsman  can  always  find  a  few  birds  even  during  the 
moult,  and  I  do  not  think  that  birds  killed  at  that  time  are  at 


120  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

all  worse  eating  than  others.  But  I  am  satisfied  that  the  great 
bulk  shift  their  quarters,  whither  I  have  not  yet  fully  ascertained ; 
but  I  believe  to  the  small  runnels  and  deep  swales  which  are 
found  throughout  all  the  mountain  tracts  of  the  middle  States ; 
and  in  these,  as  I  believe,  they  remain  dispersed  and  scattered 
in  such  small  parties  that  they  are  not  worth  looking  after,  till 
the  frost  drives  them  down  to  their  old  haunts.  A  gentleman, 
whom  I  can  depend  on,  told  me  once  that  he  climbed  Bull  Hill 
one  year  late  in  September — Bull  Hill  is  one  of  the  loftiest  peaks 
in  the  Highlands  of  the  Hudson — merely  to  show  the  prospect 
to  a  friend,  and  he  found  all  the  brushwood  on  the  summit  full 
of  fine  autumn  cock,  not  a  bird  having  been  seen  for  weeks  in 
the  low  woodlands  at  the  base.  They  had  no  guns  with  them 
at  the  time,  and  some  days  elapsed  before  he  could  again  spare 
a  few  hours  to  hunt  them  up  ;  in  the  meantime  frost  came,  the 
birds  returned  to  their  accustomed  swamps  and  levels,  and, 
when  he  did  again  scale  the  rough  mountain,  not  a  bird  re- 
warded his  trouble.  This,  if  true,  which  I  do  not  doubt,  would 
go  far  to  prove  my  theory  correct ;  but  it  is  not  easy  to  arrive 
at  absolute  certainty,  for  if  I  am  right,  during  that  period  birds 
are  to  be  found  no  where  in  abundance,  and  a  man  must  be  a 
downright  Audubon  to  be  willing  to  go  mountain-stalking — the 
hardest  walking  in  the  world,  by  the  way — purely  for  the  sake 
of  learning  the  habits  of  friend  Scotyxzx,  with  no  hope  of  get- 
ting a  good  bag  after  all." 

"  How  late  have  you  ever  killed  a  cock  previous  to  their  great 
southern  flight  ?" 

"Never  myself  beyond  the  fifteenth  of  November  ;  but  Tom 
Draw  assures  me,  and  his  asseveration  was  accidently  cor- 
roborated by  a  man  who  walked  along  with  him,  that  he  killed 
thirty  birds  last  year  in  Hell-hole,  which  both  of  you  fellows 
know,  on  the  thirteenth  of  December.  There  had  been  a  very 
severe  frost  indeed,  and  the  ice  on  that  very  morning  was  quite 
thick,  and  the  mud  frozen  hard  enough  to  bear  in  places.  But 
the  day  was  warm,  bright,  and  genial,  and,  as  he  says,  it  came 
into  his  head  to  see  *  if  cock  was  all  gone,'  and  he  went  to  what 
he  knew  to  be  the  latest  ground,  and  found  the  very  heaviest 
and  finest  birds  he  ever  saw  !" 

"  Oh  !  that  of  course,"  said  A ,  "  if  he  found  any  !  Did 

you  ever  hear  of  any  other  bird  so  late  ?3> 

"  Yes  !  later — Mike  Sandford,  I  think,  but  some  Jerseyman 
or  other — killed  a  couple  the  day  after  Christmas  day,  on  a 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  121 

long  southern  slope  covered  with  close  dwarf  cedars,  and 
watered  by  some  tepid  springs,  not  far  from  Pine  Brook ;  and  I 
liave  been  told  that  the  rabbit  shooters,  who  always  go  out  in  a 
party  between  Christmas  and  New  Year's  day,  almost  invariably 
flush  a  bird  or  two  there  in  mid-winter.  The  same  thing  is 
told  of  a  similar  situation  on  the  seuth-western  slope  of  Staten 
island ;  and  I  believe  truly  in  both  instances.  These,  however, 
inust,  I  think,  be  looked  upon  not  as  cases  of  late  emigration, 
but  as  rare  instances  of  the  bird  wintering  here  to  the  north- 
ward;  which.  I  doubt  not  a  few  do  annually.  I  should  like 
much  to  know  if  there  is  any  State  of  the  Union  where  the 
•cock  is  perennial*  I  do  not  see  why  he  should  not  be  so  in 
Maryland  or  Delaware,  though  I  have  never  heard  it  stated  so 
to  be.  The  great  heat  of  the  extreme  southern  summer  drives 
them  north,  as  surely  as  our  northern  winter  sends  them  south  ; 
and  the  great  emigrations  of  the  main  flight  are  northward  in 
February  and  March,  and  southward  in  November,  varying  by 
a  few  days  only  according  to  the  variations  of  the  seasons !" 

"  Well,  I  trust  they  have  not  emigrated  hence  yet — ha  !  ha  ! 
ha !"  laughed  the  Commodore,  with  his  peculiar  hearty,  deep- 
toned  merriment. 

"  Not  they  !  not  they  !  I  warrant  them,"  said  Archer  ;  "  but 
that  to-morrow  must  bring  forth." 

"  Come,  Harry,"  exclaimed  Forester,  after  a  little  pause,  "  spin 
us  a  shooting  yarn,  to  kill  the  time,  till  we  get  to  fat  Tom's." 

"  A  yarn  !  well,  what  shall  it  be  ?" 

"  I  don't  know  ;  oh  !  yes  !  yes  !  I  do.  You  once  told  me  some- 
thing about  a  wolf-hunt,  and  then  shut  up  your  mouth  all  at 
once,  and  would  give  me  no  satisfaction." 

"  A  wolf-hunt  f "  cried  the  Commodore,  "  were  you  ever  at  a 
wolf-hunt ;  and  here  in  this  country,  Harry  ?" 

"  Indeed  was  I,  and — " 

u  The  story,  then,  the  story  ;  we  must  have  it," 

u  Oh  !  as  for  story,  there  is  not  much — " 

"  The  story  !  the  story  !"  shouted  Frank.  «  You  may  as  well 
begin  at  once,  for  we  will  have  it." 

Oh !  very  well.     All  is  one  to  me,  but  you  will  be  tired 
of  it  before  I  have  got  through,  so  here  goes  for 

A  WOLF  HUNT  ON  THE  WARWICK  HILLS," 
said  Archer,  and  without  more  ado,  spun  his  yarn  as  follows  : 
%  There  are  few  wilder  regions  within  the  compass  of  the 
6 


122  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

United  States,  much  less  in  the  vicinity  of  its  most  populous  and 
cultivated  districts,  than  that  long  line  of  rocky  wood-crowned 
heights  which — at  times  rising  to  an  elevation  and  exhibiting  a 
boldness  of  outline  that  justifies  the  application  to  them  of  the 
term  *  mountains/  while  at  others  they  would  be  more  appro- 
priately designated  as  hills  or  knolls — run  all  across  the  Eastern 
and  the  Midland  States,  from  the  White  Mountains  westward  to 
the  Alleghanies,  between  which  mighty  chains  they  form  an  in- 
termediate and  continuous  link. 

"  Through  this  stern  barrier,  all  the  great  rivers  of  the  States, 
through  which  they  run,  have  rent  themselves  a  passage,  exhibit- 
ing in  every  instance  the  most  sublime  and  boldest  scenery, 
while  many  of  the  minor,  though  still  noble  streams,  come  forth 
sparkling  and  bright  and  cold  from  the  clear  lakes  and  lonely 
springs  embosomed  in  its  dark  recesses. 

"Possessing,  for  the  most  part,  a  width  of  eight  or  ten  miles, 
this  chain  of  hills  consists,  at  some  points,  of  a  single  ridge, 
rude,  forest-clad  and  lonely — at  others,  of  two,  three,  or  even 
four  distinct  and  separate  lines  of  heights,  with  valleys  more  or 
less  highly  cultured,  long  sheets  of  most  translucent  water,  and 
wild  mountain  streams  dividing  them. 

"  With  these  hills — known  as  the  Highlands — where  the 
gigantic  Hudson  has  cloven,  at  some  distant  day,  a  devious  path 
for  his  eternal  and  resistless  waters,  and  by  a  hundred  other 
names,  the  Warwick  Hills,  the  Greenwoods,  and  yet  farther 
west,  the  Blue  Ridge  and  the  Kittatinny  Mountains,  as  they 
trend  southerly  and  west  across  New  York  and  New  Jersey — 
with  these  hills  I  have  now  to  do. 

"  Not  as  the  temples  meet  for  the  lonely  muse,  fit  habitations 
for  the  poet's  rich  imaginings !  not  as  they  are  most  glorious  in 
their  natural  scenery — whether  the  youthful  May  is  covering 
their  rugged  brows  with  the  bright  tender  verdure  of  the  tas- 
selled  larch,  and  the  yet  brighter  green  of  maple,  mountain  ash 
and  willow — or  the  full  flush  of  summer  has  clothed  their  forests 
with  impervious  and  shadowy  foliage,  while  carpeting  their  sides 
with  the  unnumbered  blossoms  of  calmia,  rhododendron  and 
azalia ! — whether  the  gorgeous  hues  of  autumn  gleam  like  the 
banners  of  ten  thousand  victor  armies  along  their  rugged  slopes, 
or  the  frozen  winds  of  winter  have  roofed  their  headlands  with 
inviolate  white  snow  !  Not  as  their  bowels  teem  with  the  wealth 
of  mines  which  ages  of  man's  avarice  may  vainly  labor  to  ex- 
haust !  but  as  they  are  the  loved  abode  of  many  a  woodland 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  123 

denizen  that  has  retreated,  even  from  more  remote  and  seem- 
ingly far  wilder  fastnesses,  to  these  sequestered  haunts.  I  love 
them,  in  that  the  graceful  hind  conceals  her  timid  fawn  among 
the  ferns  that  wave  on  the  lone  banks  of  many  a  nameless  rill, 
threading  their  hills,  untrodden  save  by  the  miner,  or  the  un- 
frequent  huntsman's  foot — in  that  the  noble  stag  frays  often- 
times his  antlers  against  their  giant  trees— in  that  the  mighty 
bear  lies  hushed  in  grim  repose  amid  their  tangled  swamps — in 
that  their  bushy  dingles  resound  nightly  to  the  long-drawn  howl 
of  the  gaunt  famished  wolf — in  that  the  lynx  and  wild-cat  yet 
mark  their  prey  from  the  pine  branches — in  that  the  ruffed 
grouse  drums,  the  woodcock  bleats,  and  the  quail  chirrups  from 
every  height  or  hollow — in  that,  more  strange  to  tell,  the  noblest 
game  of  trans-atlantic  fowl,  the  glorious  turkey — although,  like 
angels'  visits,  they  be  indeed  but  few  and  far  between — yet  spread 
their  bronzed  tails  to  the  sun,  and  swell  and  gobble  in  their 
most  secret  wilds. 

"  I  love  those  hills  of  Warwick — many  a  glorious  day  have 
I  passed  in  their  green  recesses  ;  many  a  wild  tale  have  I  heard 
of  sylvan  sport  and  forest  warfare,  and  many,  too,  of  patriot 
partisanship  in  the  old  revolutionary  days — the  days  that  tried 
men's  souls — while  sitting  at  my  noontide  meal  by  the  secluded 
well-head,  under  the  canopy  of  some  primeval  oak,  with  imple- 
ments of  woodland  sport,  rifle  or  shot-gun  by  my  side,  and  well- 
broke  setter  or  stanch  hound  recumbent  at  my  feet.  And  ono 
of  these  tales  will  I  now  venture  to  record,  though  it  will  sound 
but  weak  and  feeble  from  my  lips,  if  compared  to  the  rich,  racy, 
quaint  and  humorous  thing  it  was,  when  flowing  from  the  nature- 
gifted  tongue  of  our  old  friend  Tom  Draw." 

"  Hear  !  hear  !"  cried  Frank,  "  the  chap  is  eloquent !" 

"It  was  the  middle  of  the  winter  1832 — which  was,  as  you 
will  recollect,  of  most  unusual  severity — that  I  had  gone  up  to 
Tom  Draw's,  with  a  view  merely  to  quail  shooting,  though  I  had 
taken  up,  as  usual,  my  rifle,  hoping  perhaps  to  get  a  chance  shot 
at  a  deer.  The  very  first  night  I  arrived,  the  old  bar-room  was 
full  of  farmers,  talking  all  very  eagerly  about  the  ravages  which 
had  been  wrought  among  their  flocks  by  a  small  pack  of  wolves, 
five  or  six,  as  they  said,  in  number,  headed  by  an  old  gaunt 
famished  brute,  which  had  for  many  )-ears  been  known  through 
the  whole  region,  by  the  loss  of  one  hind  foot,  which  had  been 
cut  off  in  a  steel  trap. 

"  More  than  a  hundred  sheep  had  been  destroyed  during  the 


124  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

winter,  and  several  calves  beside  ;  and  what  had  stirred  espe- 
cially the  bile  of  the  good  yeomen,  was  that,  with  more  than 
customary  boldness,  they  had  the  previous  night  made  a  descent 
into  the  precints  of  the  village,  and  carried  off  a  fat  wether  of 
Tom  Draw's. 

"  A  slight  fall  of  snow  had  taken  place  the  morning  I  arrived, 
and,  this  suggesting  to  Tom's  mind  a  possibility  of  hunting  up 
the  felons,  a  party  had  gone  out  and  tracked  them  to  a  small 
swamp  on  the  Bellevale  Mountain,  wherein  they  had  undoubt- 
edly made  their  head-quarters.  Arrangements  had  been  made 
on  all  sides — forty  or  fifty  stout  and  active  men  were  mustered, 
well  armed,  though  variously,  with  muskets,  ducking-guns  and 
rifles — some  fifteen  couple  of  strong  hounds,  of  every  height 
and  color,  were  collected — some  twenty  horses  saddled  and 
bridled,  and  twice  as  many  sleighs  were  ready  ;  with  provisions, 
ammunition,  liquor  and  blankets,  all  prepared  for  a  week's 
bivouac.  The  plan  prescribed  was  in  the  first  place  to  surround 
the  swamp,  as  silently  as  possible,  with  all  our  forces,  and  then 
to  force  the  pack  out  so  as  to  face  our  volley.  This,  should  the 
method  be  successful,  would  finish  the  whole  hunt  at  once ;  but 
should  the  three-legged  savage  succeed  in  making  his  escape, 
we  were  to  hunt  him  by  relays,  bivouacking  upon  the  ground 
wherever  night  should  find  us,  and  taking  up  the  chase  again 
upon  the  following  morning,  until  continual  fatigue  should  wear 
out  the  fierce  brute.  I  had  two  horses  with  me,  and  Tim  Mat- 
lock  ;  so  I  made  up  my  mind  at  once,  got  a  light  one-horse 
sleigh  up  in  the  village,  rigged  it  with  all  my  bear-skins,  good 
store  of  whiskey,  eatables,  and  so  forth,  saddled  the  gray  with 
my  best  Somerset,  holsters  and  surcingle  attached,  and  made  one 
of  the  party  on  the  instant. 

"Before  daylight  we  started,  a  dozen  mounted  men  leading 
the  way,  with  the  intent  to  get  quite  round  the  ridge,  and  cut 
off  the  retreat  of  these  most  wily  beasts  of  prey,  before  the 
coming  of  the  rear-guard  should  alarm  them — and  the  remain- 
der of  the  party,  sleighing  it  merrily  along,  with  all  the  hounds 
attached  to  them.  The  dawn  was  yet  in  its  first  gray  dimness 
when  we  got  into  line  along  the  little  ridge  which  bounds  that 
small  dense  brake  on  the  northeastern  side — upon  the  southern 
side  the  hill  rose  almost  inaccessibly  in  a  succession  of  short 
limestone  ledges — westward  the  open  woods,  through  which  the 
hounds  and  footmen  were  approaching,  sloped  down  in  a  long 
easy  fall,  into  the  deep  secluded  basin,  filled  with  the  densest  and 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  125 

most  thorny  coverts,  and  in  the  summer  time  waist  deep  in 
water,  and  almost  inaccessible,  though  now  floored  with  a  sheet 
of  solid  ice,  firm  as  the  rocks  around  it — due  northward  was  an 
open  field,  dividing  the  wolf-dingle  from  the  mountain  road  by 
which  we  always  travel. 

"  Our  plot  had  been  well  laid,  and  thus  far  had  succeeded.  I, 
with  eleven  horsemen,  drawn  up  in  easy  pistol  shot  one  of  the 
other,  had  taken  our  ground  in  perfect  silence ;  and,  as  we  readily 
discovered,  by  the  untrodden  surface  of  the  snow,  our  enemies 
were  as  yet  undisturbed.  My  station  was  the  extreme  left  of 
our  line,  as  we  faced  westward,  close  to  the  first  ridge  of  the 
southern  hill ;  and  there  I  sat  in  mute  expectancy,  my  holsters 
thrown  wide  open,  my  Kuchenre liters  loaded  and  cocked,  and 
my  good  ounce-ball  rifle  lying  prepared  within  the  hollow  of  my 
arm. 

"  Within  a  short  half  hour  I  saw  the  second  party,  captained 
by  our  friend  Garry,  coming  up  one  by  one,  and  forming  silently 
and  promptly  upon  the  hill  side — and  directly  after  I  heard  the 
crash  and  shout  of  our  beaters,  as  they  plunged  into  the  thicket 
at  its  westward  end.  So  far  as  I  could  perceive,  all  had  gone 
well.  Two  sides,  my  own  eyes  told  me,  were  surrounded,  and 
the  continuous  line  in  which  the  shouts  ran  all  along  the  farther 
end,  would  have  assured  me,  if  assurance  had  been  needful,  for 
Tom  himself  commanded  in  that  quarter,  that  all  was  perfectly 
secure  on  that  side.  A  Jersey  man,  a  hunter  of  no  small  repute, 
had  been  detached  with  a  fourth  band  to  guard  the  open  fields 
upon  the  north  ;  due  time  had  been  allotted  to  him,  and,  as  we 
judged,  he  was  upon  his  ground.  Scarce  had  the  first  yell 
echoed  through  the  forest  before  the  pattering  of  many  feet 
might  be  heard,  mingled  with  the  rustling  of  the  matted  boughs 
throughout  the  covert — and  as  the  beaters  came  on,  a  whole 
host  of  rabbits,  with  no  less  than  seven  foxes,  two  of  them  gray, 
came  scampering  through  our  line  in  mortal  terror  ;  but  on  they 
went  unharmed,  for  strict  had  been  the  orders  that  no  shot 
should  be  fired,  save  at  the  lawful  objects  of  the  chase.  Just 
at  this  moment  I  saw  Garry,  who  stood  a  hundred  feet  above 
me  on  the  hill,  commanding  the  whole  basin  of  the  swamp, 
bring  up  his  rifle.  This  was  enough  for  me — my  thumb  was  on 
the  cock,  the  nail  of  my  forefinger  pressed  closely  on  the  trigger- 
guard.  He  lowered  it  again,  as  though  he  had  lost  sight  of  his 
object — raised  it  again  with  great  rapidity,  and  fired.  My  eye- 
was  on  the  muzzle  of  his  piece,  and  just  as  the  bright  stream  of 


126  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

flame  glanced  from  it,  distinctly  visible  in  the  dim  of  morning 
twilight,  before  my  ear  had  caught  the  sound  of  the  report,  a 
sharp  long  snarl  rose  from  the  thicket,  announcing  that  a  wolf 
was  wounded.  Eagerly,  keenly  did  I  listen  ;  but  there  came  no 
further  sound  to  tell  me  of  his  whereabout. 

"  4I  hit  him,'  shouted  Garry,  '  I  hit  him  then,  I  swon  ;  but  I 
guess  not  so  badly,  but  he  can  travel  still.  Look  out  you, 
Archer,  he's  squatted  in  the  thick  there,  and  won't  stir  'till  they 
get  close  a  top  on  him.' 

"  While  he  was  speaking  yet,  a  loud  and  startling  shout  arose 
from  the  open  field,  announcing  to  my  ear  upon  the  instant  that 
one  or  more  had  broken  covert  at  some  unguarded  spot,  as  it  was 
evident  from  the  absence  of  any  firing.  The  leader  of  our  squad 
was  clearly  of  the  same  opinion  ;  for,  motioning  to  us  to  spread 
our  line  a  little  wider,  he  galloped  off  at  a  tremendous  rate, 
spurning  the  snowballs  high  into  the  air,  accompanied  by  three 
of  his  best  men,  to  stop  the  gap  which  had  been  left  through 
the  misapprehension  of  the  Jersey  man. 

"  This  he  accomplished  ;  but  not  until  the  great  wolf,  wilier 
than  his  comrades,  had  got  off  unharmed.  He  had  not  moved 
five  minutes  before  a  small  dark  bitch-wolf  broke  away  through 
our  line,  at  the  angle  furthest  from  my  station,  and  drew  a  scat- 
tering volley  from  more  than  half  our  men — too  rapid  and  too 
random  to  be  deadly — though  several  of  the  balls  struck  close 
about  her,  I  thought  she  had  got  off  scot  free ;  but  Jem  Mc- 
Daniel — whom  you  know — a  cool,  old  steady  hand,  had  held 
his  fire,  and  taking  a  long  quiet  aim,  lodged  his  ball  fairly  in 
the  centre  of  her  shoulders — over  she  went,  and  over,  tearing 
the  snow  with  tooth  and  claw  in  her  death  agony  ;  while  fancy- 
ing, I  suppose,  that  all  our  guns  were  emptied — for,  by  my  life, 
I  think  the  crafty  brutes  can  almost  reason — out  popped  two 
more  !  one  between  me  and  my  right  hand  man — the  other,  a 
large  dog,  dragging  a  wounded  leg  behind  him,  under  my  horse's 
very  feet.  Bob  made  a  curious  demi-volte,  I  do  assure  you,  as 
the  dark  brindled  villain  darted  between  his  fore  legs  with  an 
angry  snarl ;  bu,t  at  a  single  word  and  slight  admonition  of  the 
curb,  stood  motionless  as  though  he  had  been  carved  in  marble. 
Quickly  I  brought  my  rifle  up,  though  steadily  enough,  and — 
more,  I  fancy,  by  good  luck  than  management — planted  my 
bullet  in  the  neck,  just  where  the  skull  and  spine  unite,  so  that 
he  bounced  three  feet  at  least  above  the  frozen  snow,  and  fell 
quite  dead,  within  twelve  paces  of  the  covert.  The  other  wolf, 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  127 

which  had  crept  out  to  my  right  hand,  was  ^welcomed  by  the 
almost  simultaneous  fire  of  three  pieces,  one  of  which  only 
lodged  its  bullet,  a  small  one  by  the  way — eighty  or  ninety  only 
to  the  pound — too  light  entirely  to  tell  a  story,  in  the  brute's 
loins, 

"  He  gave  a  savage  yell  enough  as  the  shot  told ;  and,  for 
the  first  twenty  or  thirty  yards,  dragged  his  hind  quarters 
heavily ;  but,  as  he  went  on,  he  recovered,  gathering  headway 
very  rapidly  over  the  little  ridge,  and  through  the  open  wood- 
land, toward  a  clear  field  on  the  mountain's  brow.  Just  as  this 
passed,  a  dozen  shots  were  fired,  in  a  quick  running  volley,  from 
the  thicket,  just  where  an  old  cart-way  divides  it ;  followed, 
after  a  moment's  pause,  by  one  full,  round  report,  which  I  knew 
instantly  to  be  the  voice  of  old  Tom's  musket ;  nor  did  I  err, 
for,  while  its  echoes  were  yet  vocal  in  the  leafless  forest,  the 
owner's  jovial  shout  was  heard — 

"  4  Wiped  all  your  eyes,  boys  !  all  of  them,  by  the  Etarnal ! — 
Who-whoop  for  our  side  ! — and  I'll  bet  horns  for  all  on  us,  old 
leather-breeches  has  killed  his'n.' 

<c  This  passed  so  rapidly — in  fact  it  was  all  nearly  simultaneous 
— that  the  fourth  wolf  was  yet  in  sight,  when  the  last  shot  was 
fired.  We  all  knew  well  enough  that  the  main  object  of  our 
chase  had  for  the  time  escaped  us  ! — the  game  was  all  afoot ! — 
three  of  them  slain  already  ;  nor  was  there  any  longer  aught  to 
be  gained  by  sticking  to  our  stations.  So,  more  for  deviltry  than 
from  entertaining  any  real  hope  of  overtaking  him,  I  chucked 
my  rifle  to  the  nearest  of  the  farmers,  touched  old  Bob  with  the 
spur,  and  went  away  on  a  hard  gallop  after  the  wounded  fugi- 
tive, who  was  now  plodding  onward  at  the  usual  long  loping 
canter  of  his  tribe.  For  about  half  a  mile  the  wood  was  open, 
and  sloped  gently  upward,  until  it  joined  the  open  country, 
where  it  was  bounded  by  a  high  rugged  fence,  made  in  the 
usual  snake  fashion,  with  a  huge  heavy  top-rail.  This  we  soon 
reached ;  the  wolf,  which  was  more  hurt  than  I  had  fancied,  be- 
ginning to  lag  grievously,  crept  through  it  scarcely  a  hundred 
yards  ahead  of  me,  and,  by  good  luck,  at  a  spot  where  the  top 
rail  had  been  partially  dislodged,  so  that  Bob  swept  over  it,  al- 
most without  an  effort,  in  his  gallop ;  though  it  presented  an 
impenetrable  rampart  to  some  half  dozen  of  the  horsemen  who 
had  followed.  I  was  now  in  a  cleared  lot  of  some  ten  acres, 
forming  the  summit  of  the  hill,  which,  farther  on,  sunk  steeply 
into  a  dark  ravine  full  of  thick  brushwood,  with  a  small  verge 


128  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

of  thinly  growing  coppice  not  more  than  twenty  yards  in  width, 
on  tolerably  level  ground,  within  the  low  stone-wall  which  part- 
ed it  from  the  cultivated  land.  I  felt  that  I  was  now  upon  my 
vantage  ground ;  and  you  may  be  sure,  Frank,  that  I  spared 
not  the  spurs  ;  but  the  wolf,  conscious  probably  of  the  vicinity 
of  some  place  of  safety,  strained  every  nerve  and  ran,  in  fact,  as 
if  he  had  been  almost  unwounded  ;  so  that  he  was  still  twelve 
or  fourteen  paces  from  me  when  he  jumped  on  the  wall. 

"  Once  over  this,  I  well  knew  he  was  safe ;  for  I  was  thor- 
oughly acquainted  with  the  ground,  and  was  of  course  aware 
that  no  horse  could  descend  the  banks  of  the  precipitous  ravine. 
In  this  predicament,  I  thought  I  might  as  well  take  a  chance  at 
him  with  one  of  my  good  pistols,  though  of  course  with  faint 
hopes  of  touching  him.  However,  I  pulled  out  the  right  hand 
nine-inch  barrel,  took  a  quick  sight,  and  let  drive  a*  him  ;  and, 
much  to  my  delight,  the  sound  was  answered  by  the  long  snarl- 
ing howl,  which  I  had  that  day  heard  too  often  to  doubt  any 
more  its  meaning.  Over  he  jumped,  however,  and  the  wall 
covering  him  from  my  sight,  I  had  no  means  of  judging  how 
badly  he  was  hurt ;  so  on  I  went,  and  charged  the  wall  with  a 
tight  rein,  and  a  steady  pull ;  and  lucky  for  me  was  it,  that  I 
had  a  steady  pull ;  for  under  the  lee  of  the  wall  there  was  a 
heap  of  rugged  logs  into  which  Bob  plunged  gallantly,  and,  in 
spite  of  my  hard  hold  on  him,  floundered  a  moment,  and  went 
over.  Had  I  been  going  at  top  speed,  a  very  nasty  fall  must 
have  been  the  immediate  consequence — as  it  was,  both  of  us 
rolled  over  ;  but  with  small  violence,  and  on  soft  snow,  so  that 
no  harm  was  done. 

"  As  I  came  off,  however,  I  found  myself  in  a  most  unplea- 
sant neighborhood ;  for  my  good  friend  the  wolf,  hurt  pretty 
badly  by  the  last  shot,  had,  as  it  seemed,  ensconced  himself 
among  the  logs,  whence  Bob's  assault  and  subsequent  discomfit- 
ure had  somewhat  suddenly  dislodged  him  ;  so  that,  as  I  rolled 
over  on  the  snow,  I  found  myself  within  six  feet  of  my  friend, 
seemingly  very  doubtful  whether  to  fight  or  fly !  But,  by  good 
luck,  my  bullet  had  struck  him  on  the  hip-bone,  and  being  of  a 
rather  large  calibre,  had  let  his  claret  pretty  freely  loose,  besides 
shattering  the  bone,  so  that  he  was  but  in  poor  fighting  trim ; 
and  I  had  time  to  get  back  to  the  gray — who  stood  snorting 
and  panting,  up  to  his  knees  in  snow  and  rubbish,  but  without 
offering  to  stir — to  draw  my  second  pistol,  and  to  give  Isegrin 
— as  the  Germans  call  him — the  coup  de  grace,  before  he  could 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  129 

attain  the  friendly  shelter  of  the  dingle,  to  which  with  all  due 
speed  he  was  retreating.  By  this  time  all  our  comrades  had  as- 
sembled. Loud  was  the  glee — boisterous  the  applause,  which 
fell  especially  to  me,  who  had  performed  with  my  own  hand  the 
glorious  feat  of  slaying  two  wolves  in  one  morning  ;  and  deep 
the  cups  of  applejack.  Scotch  whiskey,  and  Jamaica  spirits, 
which  flowed  in  rich  libations,  according  to  the  tastes  of  the 
compotators,  over  the  slaughtered  quarry. 

"  Breakfast  was  produced  on  the  spot ;  cold  salt  pork,  onions, 
and  hard  biscuit  forming  the  principal  dishes,  washed  down  by 
nothing  weaker  than  the  pure  ardent !  Not  long,  however,  did 
fat  Tom  permit  us  to  enjoy  our  ease. 

"  *  Come,  boys/  he  shouted,  *  no  lazin'  here  ;  no  gormandizin' 
— the  worst  part  of  our  work's  afore  us  ;  the  old  lame  devil  is 
afoot,  and  five  miles  off  by  now.  We  must  get  back,  and  lay 
the  hounds  on,  right  stret  off — and  well  if  the  scent  an't  cold 
now  !  He's  tuk  right  off  toward  Duckcedars' — for  so  Tom  ever 
calls  Truxedo  Pond — a  lovely  crescent-shaped  lakelet  deep  in 
the  bosom  of  the  Greenwoods — '  so  off  with  you,  Jem,  down  by 
the  road,  as  hard  as  you  can  strick  with  ten  of  your  boys  in 
sleighs,  and  half  the  hounds  ;  and  if  you  find  his  tracks  acrost 
the  road,  don't  wait  for  us,  but  strick  right  arter  him.  Yon, 
Garry,  keep  stret  down  the  old  road  with  ten  dogs  and  all  the 
plunder — we'll  meet  at  night,  I  reckon.' 

"  No  sooner  said  than  done  !  the  parties  were  sent  off  with 
the  relays.  This  was  on  Monday  morning — Tom  and  I,  and 
some  thirteen  others,  with  eight  couple  of  the  best  dogs,  stuck 
to  his  slot  on  foot.  It  was  two  hours  at  least,  so  long  had  he 
been  gone,  before  a  single  hound  spoke  to  it,  and  I  had  begun 
well  nigh  to  despair  ;  but  Tom's  immense  sagacity,  which  seem- 
ed almost  to  know  instinctively  the  course  of  the  wily  savage, 
enabling  us  to  cut  off  the  angles  of  his  course,  at  last  brought 
us  up  somewhat  nearer  to  him.  At  about  noon,  two  or  three 
of  the  hounds  opened,  but  doubtfully  and  faintly.  His  slot, 
however,  showed  that  they  were  right,  and  lustily  we  cheered 
them  on  !  Tom,  marvelling  the  while  that  we  heard  not  the 
cry  of  Jem's  relay. 

" '  For  I'll  be  darned,'  he  said,  *  if  he  hasn't  crossed  the  road 
long  enough  since  ;  and  that  dumb  nigger,  Jenrs  not  had  the 
sense  to  stick  to  him  !' 

"  For  once,  however,  the  fat  man  was  wrong ;  for,  as  it   ap- 
peared when  we  neared  the  road,  the  wolf  had  headed  back, 
6* 


ISO  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

scared  doubtless  by  some  injudicious  noise  of  our  companions^ 
and  making  a  wide  ring,  had  crossed  three  miles  below  the  spot 
where  Jem  was  posted.  This  circuit  we  were  forced  to  make, 
as  at  first  sight  we  fancied  he  had  headed  altogether  back,  and 
it  was  four  o'clock  before  we  got  upon  his  scent,  hot,  fresh,  and 
breast-high  ;  running  toward  the  road,  that  is,  due  eastward 
from  the  covert  whence  he  had  bolted  in  the  morning.  Nor 
were  our  friends  inactive  ;  for,  guided  by  the  clamors  of  our 
pack,  making  the  forest  musical,  they  now  held  down  the  road ; 
and,  as  the  felon  crossed,  caught  a  long  view  of  him  as  he  limp* 
ed  over  it,  and  laid  the  fresh  hounds  on. 

"  A  brilliant  rally  followed — we  calling  off  our  wearied  dogs? 
and  hasting  to  the  lower  road,  where  we  found  Garry  with  the 
sleighs,  and  dashing  off  in  our  turn  through  all  sorts  of  by- 
paths and  wood-roads  to  head  them  once  again  !  This,  with 
much  labor,  we  effected ;  but  the  full  winter-moon  had  risen, 
and  the  innumerable  stars  were  sparkling  in  the  frosty  skies, 
when  we  flogged  off  the  hounds — kindled  our  night  fires — pre- 
pared our  evening  meal,  feasted,  and  spread  our  blankets,  and 
slept  soundly  under  no  warmer  canopy  than  the  blue  firmament 
— secure  that  our  lame  friend  would  lie  up  for  the  night  at  no 
great  distance.  With  the  first  peep  of  dawn  we  were  again 
afoot,  and,  the  snow  still  befriending  us,  we  roused  him  from  a 
cedar-brake  at  about  nine  o'clock,  cut  him  off  three  times  with 
fresh  dogs  and  men,  the  second  day,  and  passed  the  night, 
some  sixteen  miles  from  home,  in  the  rude  hovel  of  a  charcoal 
burner. 

"  Greater  excitement  I  cannot  imagine,  than  that  wild,  inde- 
pendent chace ! — sometimes  on  foot,  cheering  the  hounds  through 
swamp  and  dingle,  over  rough  cliffs  and  ledges  where  foot  of 
horse  could  avail  nothing.  Sometimes  on  horseback,  galloping 
merrily  through  the  more  open  woodlands.  Sometimes  career- 
ing in  the  flying  sleigh,  to  the  gay  music  of  its  bells,  along  the 
wild  wood-paths  !  Well  did  we  fare,  too — ay,  sumptuously  ! 
— for  our  outskirters,  though  they  reserved  their  rifles  for  the 
appropriate  game,  were  not  so  sparing  with  the  shot-gun  ;  so 
that,  night  after  night,  our  chaldron  reeked  with  the  mingled 
steam  of  rabbit,  quail,  and  partridge,  seethed  up  a  la  Meg  Mer~ 
rilieSj  with  fat  pork,  onions,  and  potatoes — by  the  Lord  Harry ! 
Frank,  a  glorious  and  unmatched  consummee. 

"  To  make,  however,  a  long  tale  short — for  every  day's  work, 
although  varied  to  the  actors  by  thousands  of  minute  but  un- 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  131 

narratable  particulars,  would  appear  but  as  a  repetition  of  the 
last,  to  the  mere  listener — to  make  a  long  tale  short,  on  the 
third  day  he  doubled  back,  took  us  directly  over  the  same 
ground — and  in  the  middle  of  the  day,  on  Saturday,  was  roused 
in  view  by  the  leading  hounds,  from  the  same  little  swamp  in 
which  the  five  had  harbored  during  the  early  winter.  No  man 
was  near  the  hounds  when  he  broke  covert.  But  fat  Tom,  who 
had  been  detached  from  the  party  to  bring  up  provisions  from 
the  village,  was  driving  in  his  sleigh  steadily  along  the  road, 
when  the  sharp  chorus  of  the  hounds  aroused  him.  A  minute 
after,  the  lame  scoundrel  limped  across  the  turnpike,  scant  thir- 
ty yards  before  him.  Alas  !  Tom  had  but  his  double-barrel, 
one  loaded  with  buck  shot,  the  other  merely  prepared  for  part- 
ridge— he  blazed  away,  however,  but  in  vain  !  Out  came  ten 
couple  on  his  track,  hard  after  him ;  and  old  Tom,  cursing  his 
bad  luck,  stood  to  survey  the  chase  across  the  open. 

"  Strange  was  the  felon's  fate  !  The  first  fence,  after  he  had 
crossed  the  road,  was  full  six  feet  in  height,  framed  of  huge  split 
logs,  piled  so  close  together  that,  save  between  the  two  topmost 
rails,  a  small  dog  even  could  have  found  no  passage.  Full  at  this 
opening  the  wolf  dashed,  as  fresh,  Tom  said,  as  though  he  had 
not  run  a  yard  ;  but  as  he  struggled  through  it,  his  efforts  shook 
the  top  rails  from  the  yokes,  and  the  huge  piece  of  timber  falling 
across  his  loins,  pinned  him  completely  !  At  a  mile  off  I  heard 
his  howl  myself,  and  the  confused  and  savage  hubbub,  as  the 
hounds  front  and  rear,  assailed  him. 

"  Hampered  although  he  was,  he  battled  it  out  fiercely — ay, 
heroically — as  six  of  our  best  hounds  maimed  for  life,  and  one 
slain  outright,  testified. 

"  Heavens  !  how  the  fat  man  scrambled  across  the  fence  !  he 
reached  the  spot,  and,  far  too  much  excited  to  reload  his  piece 
and  quietly  blow  out  the  fierce  brute's  brains,  fell  to  belaboring 
him  about  the  head  with  his  gun-stock,  shouting  the  while  and 
yelling ;  so  that  the  din  of  his  tongue,  mixed  with  the  snails 
and  long  howls  of  the  mangled  savage,  and  the  fierce  baying  of 
the  dogs,  fairly  alarmed  me,  as  I  said  before,  at  a  mile's  distance  ! 

"  As  it  chanced,  Timothy  was  on  the  road  close  by,  with  Pea- 
cock ;  I  caught  sight  of  him,  mounted,  and  spurred  on  fiercely 
to  the  rescue ;  but  when  I  reached  the  hill's  brow,  all  was  over. 
Tom,  puffing  and  panting  like  a  grampus  in  shoal  water,  covered 
— garments  and  face  and  hands — with  lupine  gore,  had  finished 
his  huge  enemy,  after  he  had  destroyed  his  gun,  with  what  he 


132  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

called  a  stick,  but  what  you  and  I,  Frank,  should  term  a  fair- 
sized  tree  ;  and  with  his  foot  upon  the  brindled  monster's  neck 
was  quaffing  copious  rapture  from  the  neck  of  a  quart  bottle — 
once  full,  but  now  well  nigh  exhausted — of  his  appropriate  and 
cherished  beverage.*  Thus  fell  the  last  wolf  on  the  Hills  of 
Warwick  ! 

"  There,  I  have  finished  my  yarn,  and  in  good  time,"  cried 
Harry,  "  for  here  we  are  at  the  bridge,  and  in  five  minutes  more 
we  shall  be  at  old  Tom's  door.'' 

"A  right  good  yarn  !"  said  Forester  ;  "  and  right  well  spun, 
upon  my  word." 

"  But  is  it  a  yarn  ?"  asked  A ,  "  or  is  it  intended  to  be 

the  truth  V 

"  Oh !  the  truth,"  laughed  Frank,  "  the  truth,  as  much  as 
Archer  can  tell  the  truth  ;  embellished,  you  understand,  embel- 
lished I" 

"  The  truth,  strictly,"  answered  Harry,  quietly — "  the  truth 
not  embellished.  When  I  tell  personal  adventures,  I  am  not  in 
the  habit  of  decorating  them  with  falsehood." 

"  I  had  no  idea,"  responded  the  Commodore,  "  that  there 
had  been  any  wolves  here  so  recently." 

"  There  are  wolves  here  now"  said  Archer,  "  though  they  are 
scarce  and  wary.  It  was  but  last  year  that  I  rode  down  over 
the  back-bone  of  the  mountain,  on  the  Pompton  road,  in  the 
night-time,  and  that  on  the  third  of  July,  and  one  fellow  follow- 
ed me  along  the  road  till  I  got  quite  down  into  the  cultivated 
country." 

"  The  devil  he  did  !" 

"  How  did  you  know  he  was  following  you  ?''  exclaimed  Frank 
and  the  Commodore,  almost  in  a  breath. 

"  Did  you  see  him  ?" 

"  Not  I — but  I  heard  him  howl  half  a  dozen  times,  and  each 
time  nearer  than  before.  When  I  got  out  of  the  hills  he  was 
not  six  hundred  yards  behind  me." 

"  Pleasant,  that !     Were  you  armed  ?     What  did  you  do  ?'' 

"It  was  not  really  so  unpleasant,  after  all — for  I  knew  that 
he  would  not  attack  me  at  that  season  of  the  year.  I  had  my 
pistols  in  my  holsters  ;  and  for  the  rest,  I  jogged  steadily  along, 
taking  care  to  keep  my  nag  in  good  wind  for  a  spirt,  if  it  should 

*  The  facts  and  incidents  of  the  lame  wolf's  death  are  strictly  true,  al- 
though they  were  not  witnessed  by  the  writer. 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  133 

be  needed*  I  knew  that  for  three  or  four  miles  I  could  outrun 
him,  if  it  should  come  to  the  worst,  though  in  the  end  a  wolf 
can  run  down  the  fastest  horse  ;  and,  as  every  mile  brought  me 
nearer  to  the  settlement,  I  did  not  care  much  about  it.  Had  it 
been  winter,  when  the  brutes  are  hard  pressed  for  food,  and  the 
deep  snows  are  against  a  horse's  speed,  it  would  be  a  very  dif- 
ferent thing.  Hurrah  !  here  we  are  !  Hurrah  !  fat  Tom  !  ahoy  ! 
a-ho-oy  I" 


THE  SUPPER  PARTY. 

BLITHE,  loud  and  hearty  was  the  welcome  of  fat  Tom,  when 
by  the  clear  view  halloa  with  which  Harry  drove  up  to  the  door 
at  a  spanking  trot,  the  horses  stopping  willingly  at  the  high 
well-known  stoop,  he  learned  who  were  these  his  nocturnal  visi- 
ters.  There  was  a  slight  tinge  of  frostiness  in  the  evening  air, 
and  a  bright  blazing  fire  filled  the  whole  bar-room  with  a  cheer- 
ful merry  light,  and  cast  a  long  stream  of  red  lustre  from  the 
tall  windows,  and  halt-open  doorway,  but  in  an  instant  all  that 
escaped  from  the  last  mentioned  aperture  was  totally  obstructed, 
as  if  the  door  had  been  pushed  to,  by  the  huge  body  of  mine  host. 

"  Why,  darn  it,'*  he  exclaimed,  "  if  that  beant  Archer  !  and 
a  hull  grist  of  boys  he's  brought  along  with  him,  too,  any  how. 
How  are  you,  Harry,  who've  you  got  along  ?  It's  so  etarnal 
thunderin'  dark  as  I  carnt  see  'em  no  how  !" 

"  Frank  and  the  Commodore,  that's  all,"  Archer  replied,  "  and 
how  are  you,  old  Corporation  ?" 

"  Oh  !  oh  !  I'm  most  darned  glad  as  you've  brought  A ; 

you  might  have  left  that  other  critter  to  home,  though,  jest  as 
well — we  doosn't  want  him  blowin'  out  his  little  hide  here  ; 
lazin'  about,  and  doin'  nothin'  day  nor  night  but  eat  and  grum- 
ble ;  and  drink,  and  drink,  as  if  he'd  got  a  meal-sack  in  his  little 
guts.  Why,  Timothy,  how  be  you  ?"  he  concluded,  smiting  him 
on  the  back  a  downright  blow,  that  would  have  almost  felled  an 
ox,  as  he  was  getting  out  the  baggage. 

u  Doant  thee  noo,  Measter  Draa,5'  expostulated  Tim,  "  behaave 
thyself,  man,  or  Ay'se  give  thee  soomat  thou  woant  loike,  I'm 
thinking.  Noo  !  send  oot  yan  o'  t'  nagers,  joost  to  stand  till  t' 
nags  till  Ay  lift  oot  t'  boxes !" 


134  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

"  A  nigger,  is  it  ?  darn  their  black  skins  !  there  was  a  dozen 
here  jest  now,  a  blockin'  up  the  fire-side,  and  stinkin'  so  no  white 
man  could  come  nearst  it,  till  I  got  an  axe-handle,  half  an  hour 
or  so  since,  and  cleared  out  the  heap  of  them  !  Niggers  !  they'll 
be  here  all  of  them  torights,  I  warrant ;  where  you  sees  Archer, 
there's  never  no  scarceness  of  dogs  and  niggers.  But  come, 
walk  in,  boys  !  walk  in,  anyhow — Jem'll  be  here  to  rights,  and 
he's  worth  two  niggers  any  day,  though  he's  black-fleshed,  I 
guess,  if  one  was  jest  to  skin  the  etarnal  creatur." 

Very  few  minutes  passed  before  they  were  all  drawn  up  round 
the  fire,  Captain  Reade  and  two  or  three  more  making  room  for 
them,  as  they  pulled  up  their  chairs  about  the  glowing  hearth — 
having  hung  up  their  coats  and  capes  against  the  wall. 

"  You'll  be  here  best,  boys,"  said  Tom,  "  for  a  piece — the 
parlor  fire's  not  been  lit  yet  this  fall,  and  it  is  quite  cold  nights 
now — but  Brower  '11  kindle  it  up  agin  supper,  for  you'll  be 
wantin'  to  eat,  all  of  you,  I  reckon,  you're  sich  darned  everlastin' 
gormandizers.'' 

"  That  most  undoubtedly  we  shall,"  said  Frank,  "  for  it's  past 
eight  now,  and  the  deuce  a  mouthful  have  we  put  into  our  heads 
since  twelve." 

"  Barrin'  the  liquor,  Frank  !  barriii'  the  liquor — now  don't 
lie !  don't  lie,  boy,  so  ridic'lous — as  if  I'd  known  you  these  six 
years,  and  then  was  a  goin'  to  believe  as  you'd  not  drinked  since 
noon  !" 

"  Why,  you  old  hogshead,  you  !  who  wants  you  to  believe 
anything  of  the  kind — we  had  one  drink  at  Tom's,  your  cousin's, 
when  we  started,  but  deuce  the  drop  since." 

"  That's  just  the  reason  why  you're  so  snarlish,  then,  I  reckon! 
Your  coppers  is  got  bilin',  leastwise  if  they  beant  all  biled  out — 
you'd  best  drink  stret  away,  I  guess,  afore  the  bottom  of  the 
biler  gits  left  bare — for  if  it  does,  and  it's  red  hot  now,  boy, 
you'll  be  a  blowin'  up,  like  an  old  steamboat,  when  you  pumps 
in  fresh  water." 

"  Well,  Tom,"  said  Archer,  "  I  do  not  think  it  would  be  a 
bad  move  to  take  a  drop  of  something,  and  a  cracker  ;  for  I 
suppose  we  shall  not  get  supper  much  short  of  two  hours  ;  and 
I'm  so  deuced  hungry,  that  if  I  don't  get  something  just  to  take 
off  the  edge,  I  shall  not  be  able  to  eat  when  it  does  come !" 

"  I'll  make  a  pitcher  of  egg  nog  ;  A drinks  egg  nog,  I 

guess,  although  he's  the  poorest  drinkin'  man  I  ever  did  see. 
Now,  Brower,  look  alive — the  fire's  lit,  is  it  ?  Well,  then,  jump 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  135 

now  and  feed  them  poor  starvin'  bags-a-bones,  as  Archer  calls 
dogs,  and  tell  your  mother  to  git  supper.  Have  you  brought 
anything  alon£  to  eat  or  drink,  boys— I  guess  we  haven't  nothin' 
in  the  house  I 

"  Oh  !  you  be  hanged,"  said  Harry,  "  I've  brought  a  round 
of  cold  spiced  beef,  but  I'm  not  going  to  cut  that  up  for  supper ; 
\ve  shall  want  it  to  take  along  for  luncheon — you  must  get  some- 
thing !  Oh  !  by  the  way,  you  may  let  the  girls  pick  half  a  dozen 
quail,  and  broil  them,  if  you  choose  !" 

"  Quail !  do  you  say  ?  and  where'll  I  git  quail,  I'd  be  pleased 
to  know?" 

"  Out  of  that  gamebag,"  answered  Harry,  deliberately,  point- 
ing to  the  well  filled  plump  net  which  Timothy  had  just  brought 
in  and  hung  up  on  the  pegs  beside  the  box-coats*  Without  a 
word  or  syllable  the  old  chap  rushed  to  the  wall,  seized  it,  and 
scarcely  pausing  to  sweep  out  of  the  way  a  large  file  of  "  The 
Spirit,"  and  several  numbers  of  "  The  Register,'5  emptied  it  on 
the  table. 

"  Where  the  plague,  Archer,  did  you  kill  them  ?"  he  asked, 
"  you  didn't  kill  all  them  to-day,  I  guess  !  One,  two,  three — 
why,  there's  twenty-seven  cock,  and  forty-nine  quail  1  By  gin ! 
here's  another ;  just  fifty  quail,  three  partridge,  and  six  rabbits  ; 
well  that's  a  most  all-fired  nice  mess,  I  swon  ;  if  you  killed  them 
to-day  you  done  right  well,  I  tell  you — you  won't  get  no  such 
mess  of  birds  here  now — but  you  was  two  days  killing  these,  I 
guess  1" 

"  Not  we,  Tom  I  Frank  and  I  drove  up  from  York  last  night, 
and  slept  at  young  Tom's,  down  the  valley — we  were  out  just 
as  soon  as  it  was  light,  and  got  the  quail,  all  except  fifteen  or 
sixteen,  the  ruffed  grouse  and  four  hares,  before  twelve  o'clock. 
At  twelve  the  Commodore  came  up  from  Nyack,  where  he  left 
his  yacht,  and  joined  us ;  we  got  some  luncheon,  went  out 
again  at  one,  and  between  that  and  five  bagged  all  the  cock,  the 
balance,  as  you  would  call  it,  of  the  quail,  and  the  other  two 
bunnies*" 

"  Well,  then,  you  made  good  work  of  it,  1  tell  you,  and  you 
won't  do  nothin'  like  that  agin  this  winter — not  in  Warwick  ; 
but  I  won't  touch  them  quail — it's  a  sin  to  break  that  bunch — 
but  you  don't  never  care  to  take  the  rabbits  home,  and  the  old 
woman's  got  some  beautiful  fresh  onions- — she'll  make  a  stew 
of  them— a  smother,  as  you  call  it,  in  a  little  less  than  no  time, 
Archer ;  and  I've  got  half  a  dozen  of  them  big  gray  snipe — • 


186  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

English  snipe — that  I  killed  down  by  ray  little  run'-side  ;  you'll 
have  them  roasted  with  the  guts  in,  I  guess  !  and  then  there's 
a  pork-steak  and  sassagers — and  if  you  don't  like  that,  you  can 
jist  go  without.  Here,  Brower,  take  these  to  your  mother,  and 
tell  her  to  git  supper  right  stret  off — and  you  tell  Emma  Jane 

to  make  some  buckwheat  cakes  for  A !  he  can't  sup  no 

how  without  buckwheat  cakes ;  and  I  sets  a  great  store  by 

A !  I  does,  by  G — !  and  you  needn't  laugh,  boys,  for  I 

doos  a  darned  sight  more  than  what  I  doos  by  you." 

"  That's  civil,  at  all  events,  and  candid,"  replied  Frank  ;  "  and 
it's  consolatory,  too,  for  I  can  fancy  no  greater  reproach  to  a 
man,  than  to  be  set  store  on  by  you.  T  do  not  comprehend  at 

all,  how  A bears  up  under  it.  But  come,  do  make  that 

egg-nog  that  you're  chattering  about." 

"  How  will  I  make  it,  Harry — with  beer,  or   milk,  or  cider  ?" 

"  All  three  !  now  be  off,  and  don't  jaw  any  more  !"  answered 
Archer — "  asking  such  silly  questions,  as  if  you  did  not  know 
better  than  any  of  us.'' 

In  a  few  minutes  the  delicious  compound  was  prepared,  and, 
with  a  plate  of  toasted  crackers  and  some  right  good  Orange 
County  butter,  was  set  on  a  small  round  stand  before  the  fire  ; 
while  from  the  neighboring  kitchen  rich  fumes  began  to  load 
the  air,  indicative  of  the  approaching  supper.  In  the  mean 
time,  the  wagon  was  unloaded  ;  Timothy  bustled  to  and  fro ; 
the  parlor  was  arranged  ;  the  bed-rooms  were  selected  by  that 
worthy;  and  everything  set  out  in  its  own  place,  so  that  they 
could  not  possibly  have  been  more  comfortable  in  their  own 
houses.  The  horses  had  been  duly  cleaned,  and  clothed,  and 
fed ;  the  dogs  provided  with  abundance  of  dry  straw,  and  a  hot 
mess  of  milk  and  meal ;  and  now,  in  the  far  corner  of  the  bar- 
room, the  indefatigable  varlet  was  cleaning  the  three  double 
guns,  as  scientifically  as  though  he  had  served  his  apprentice- 
ship to  a  gunsmith. 

Just  at  this  moment  a  heavy  foot  was  heard  upon  the  stoop, 
succeeded  by  a  whining  and  a  great  scratching  at  the  door. 
"  Here  comes  that  Indian,  Jem,''  cried  Tom,  and  as  he  spoke  the 
door  flew  open,  and  in  rushed  old  Whino,  the  tall  black  and  tan 
fox-hound,  and  Bonnybelle,  and  Blossom,  and  another  large 
blue-mottled  bitch,  of  the  Southern  breed.  It  was  a  curious 
sight  to  observe  by  how  sudden  and  intuitive  an  instinct  the 
hounds  rushed  up  to  Archer,  and  fawned  upon  him,  jumping 
up  with  their  fore-paws  upon  his  knees,  and  thrusting  their 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  18lF 

bland  smiling  faces  almost  into  his  face ;  as  he,  nothing  loath, 
nor  repelling  their  caresses,  discoursed  most  eloquent  dog-lan- 
guage to  them,  until,  excited  beyond  all  measure,  old  Whino 
seated  himself  deliberately  on  the  floor,  raised  his  nose  toward 
the  ceiling,  and  set  up  a  long,  protracted,  and  most  melancholy 
howl,  which,  before  it  had  attained,  however,  to  its  grand  cli- 
max, was  brought  to  a  conclusion  by  being  converted  into  a 
sharp  and  treble  yell !  a  consummation  brought  about  by  a 
smart  application  of  Harry's  double-thonged  four-horse  whip7 
wielded  with  all  the  power  of  Tom's  right  arm,  and  accom- 
panied by  a  "  Git  out,  now — the  whole  grist !  Kennel !  now, 
kennel !  out  with  them,  Jem,  consarn  you ;  out  with  them,-  and 
yourself,  too  !  out  of  this,  or  I'll  put  the  gad  about  you,  you 
white  Deckerin'  nigger  you  I'' 

"  Come  back,  when  you  have  put  them  up,  Jem  ;  and  mind 
you  don't  let  them  be  where  they  can  get  at  the  setters,  or 
they'll  be  fighting  like  the  devil,"  interposed  Archer — "  I  want 
to  have  a  chat  with  you.  By-the-by,  Tom,  where's  Dash — 
you'd  better  look  out,  or  the  Commodore's  dog,  Grouse,  will 
eat  him  before  morning — mine  will  not  quarrel  with  him,  but 
Grouse  will  to  a  certainty." 

"  Then  for  a  sartainty  I'll  shoot  Grouse,  and  wallop  Grouse's 
master,  and  that  'ill  be  two  right  things  done  one  mornin' ;  the 
first  would  be  a  most  darned  right  one,  any  how,  and  kind  too  I 
for  then  A would  be  forced  to  git  himself  a  good,  nice  set- 
ter dog,  and  not  go  shootin'  over  a  great  old  fat  bustin'  pinter, 
as  isn't  worth  so  much  as  I  be  to  hunt  birds !" 

"  Ha !  ha  !  ha !"  shouted  the  Commodore,  whom  nothing  can,, 
by  any  earthly  means,  put  out  of  temper,  "  ha !  ha !  ha  !  I 
should  like  to  see  you  shoot  Grouse,  Tom,  for  all  the  store  you 
set  by  me,  you'd  get  the  worst  of  that  game.  You  had  better 
take  Archer's  advice,  I  can  tell  you." 

"  Archer's  advice,  indeed !  it's  likely  now  that  I'd  have  left 
rny  nice  little  dog  to  be  spiled  by  your  big  brutes,  now  aiut  it  ? 
Come,  come,  here's  supper." 

"  Get  something  to  drink,  Jem,  along  with  Timothy,  and 
come  in  when  we've  got  through  supper." 

"  Yes,  sir,"  replied  the  knight  of  the  cut-throat ;  "  I've  got 
some  news  to  tell  you,  too,  Tom,  if  you'll  wait  a  bit." 

"  Cuss  you,  and  your  news  too,"  responded  Tom,  "  you're 
sich  a  thunderin'  liar,  there's  no  k  no  win'  when  you  do  speak 


138  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

truth.  We'll  not  be  losin'  our  supper  for  no  lies,  I  guess ! 
Leastways  I  won't !  Come  Archer." 

And  with  a  right  good  appetite  they  walked  into  the  parlor ; 
every  thing  was  in  order  ;  every  article  placed  just  as  it  had 
been  when  Frank  went  up  to  spend  his  first  week  in  the  Wood- 
lands ;  the  gun-case  stood  on  the  same  chairs  below  the  win- 
dow ;  the  table  by  the  door  was  laid  out  with  the  same  display 
of  powder-flasks,  shot-pouches,  and  accoutrements  of  all  sizes. 
The  liquor-stand  was  placed  by  Harry's  chair,  open,  containing 
the  case-bottles,  the  rummers  being  duly  ranged  upon  the 
board,  which  was  well  lighted  by  four  tall  wax  candles,  and  be- 
ing laid  with  Harry's  silver,  made  quite  a  smart  display.  The 
rabbits  smoked  at  the  head,  smothered  in  a  rich  sauce  of  cream, 
and  nicely  shredded  onions ;  the  pork  chops,  thin  and  crisply 
broiled,  exhaled  rich  odors  at  the  bottom  ;  the  English  snipe, 
roasted  to  half  a  turn,  and  reposing  on  their  neat  squares  of 
toast,  were  balanced  by  a  dish  of  well-fried  sausages,  reclining 
on  a  bed  of  mashed  potatoes  ;  champagne  was  on  the  table,  un- 
resined  and  unwired,  awaiting  only  one  touch  of  the  knife  to  re- 
lease the  struggling  spirit  from  its  transparent  prison.  Few 
words  were  spoken  for  some  time,  unless  it  were  a  challenge  to 
champagne,  the  corks  of  which  popped  frequently  and  furious ; 
or  a  request  for  another  snipe,  or  another  spoonful  of  the  sauce; 
while  all  devoted  themselves  to  the  work  in  hand  with  a  sincere 
and  business-like  earnestness  of  demeanor,  that  proved  either 
the  excellence  of  Tom  Draw's  cookery,  or  the  efficacy  of  the 
Spartan  sauce  which  the  sportsmen  had  brought  to  assist  them 
at  their  meal.  The  last  rich  drops  of  the  fourth  flask  were  trick- 
ling into  Tom's  wide-lipped  rummer,  when  Harry  said, 

"  Come,  we  have  clone,  I  think,  for  one  night ;  let's  have  the 
eatables  removed,  and  we  will  have  a  pipe,  and  hear  what  Jem 
has  got  to  say  ;  and  you  have  told  us  nothing  about  birds,  either, 
you  old  elephant ;  what  do  you  mean  by  it  ?  That's  right,  Tim, 
now  bring  in  my  cigars,  and  Mr.  Forester's  cheroots,  and  cold 
iced  water,  and  boiling-hot  water,  and  sugar,  out  of  my  box,  and 
lemons.  The  shrub  is  here,  and  the  Scotch  whiskey ;  will  you 
have  another  bottle  of  champagne,  Tom  ?  No !  Well,  then, 
look  sharp,  Timothy,  and  send  Jem  in." 

And  thereupon  Jem  entered,  thumbing  his  hat  assiduously, 
and  sat  down  in  the  corner,  by  the  window,  where  he  was 
speedily  accommodated  with  a  supply  of  liquor,  enough  to  tem- 
per any  quantity  of  clay. 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  139 

"  Well,  Jem,"  said  Archer,  "  unbutton  your  bag  now  ;  what's 
the  news  ?" 

"  Well,  Mr.  Aircher,  it  ben't  no  use  to  tell  you  on't,  with  Tom, 
there,  puttin'  a  body  out,  and  swearin'  it's  a  lie,  and  dammin'  a 
chap  up  and  down.  It  ben't  no  use  to  tell  you,  and  yet  I'd 
kind  o'  like  to,  but  then  you  won't  believe  a  fellow,  not  one  on 
you  !" 

"In  course  not,"  answered  Forester;  and  at  the  same  instant 
Tom  struck  in  likewise — 

"  It's  a  lie,  afore  you  tell  it ;  it's  a  lie,  cuss  you,  and  you 
knows  it.  I'd  sooner  take  a  nigger's  word  than  yours,  Jem,  any 
how,  for  the  darned  niggers  will  tell  the  truth  when  they  can't 
git  no  good  by  lyin',  but  you,  you  will  lie  all  times  !  When 
the  truth  would  do  the  best,  and  you  would  tell  it  if  you  could, 
you  can't  help  lyin' !" 

"  Shut  up,  you  old  thief;  shut  up  instantly,  and  let  the  man 
speak,  will  you  ;  I  can  see  by  his  face  that  he  has  got  something 
to  tell ;  and  as  for  lying,  you  beat  him  at  it  any  day." 

Torn  was  about  to  answer,  when  Harry,  who  had  been  eager- 
ly engaged  in  mixing  a  Luge  tumbler-full  of  strong  cold  shrub 
punch,  thrust  it  under  his  nose,  and  he,  unable  to  resist  the  soft 
seductive  odor,  seized  it  incontinently,  and  neither  spoke  nor 
breathed  again  until  the  bottom  of  the  rummer  was  brought 
parallel  to  the  ceiling  ;  then,  with  a  deep  heart-felt  sigh,  he  set 
it  down  ;  and,  with  a  calm  placid  smile,  exclaimed,  "  Tell  on, 
Jem."  Whereupon  that  worthy  launched  into  his  full  tide  of 
narrative,  as  follows: 

"  Well,  you  sees,  Mr.  Aircher,  I  tuk  up  this  mornin'  clean  up 
the  old  crick  side,  nigh  to  Vernon,  and  then  I  turned  in  back 
of  old  Squire  Vandergriff's,  and  druv  the  mountains  clear  down 
here  till  I  reached  Rocky  Hill ;  I'd  pretty  good  sport,  too,  I 
tell  you ;  I  shot  a  big  gray  fox  on  Round  Top,  and  started  a 
raal  rouser  of  a  red  one  down  in  the  big  swamp,  in  the  bottom, 
and  them  sluts  did  keep  the  darndest  ragin'  you  ever  did  hear 
tell  on.  Well,  they  tuk  him  clean  out  across  the  open,  past 
Andy  Joneses,  and  they  skeart  up  in  his  stubbles  three  bevies, 
I  guess,  got  into  one  like  !  there  was  a  drove  of  them,  I  tell 
you,  and  "then  they  brought  him  back  to  the  hills  agin,  and  run 
him  twice  clean  round  the  Rocky  Hill,  and  when  they  came 
round  the  last  time,  the  English  sluts  warn't  half  a  rod  from  his 
tail  no  how,  and  so  he  tried  his  last  chance,  and  he  holed :  but 
roy!  now,  Mr.  Aircher,  by  darn,  you  niver  did  see  nothin'  like 


140  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

the  partridges ;  they  kept  a  brushin'  up  and  brushin'  up,  and 
treein'  every  little  while  ;  I  guess  if  I  seen  one  I  seen  a  hun- 
dred ;  why,  I  killed  seven  on  'em  with  coarse  shot  up  in  the 
pines,  and  I  daredn't  shoot  exceptin'  at  their  heads.  If  you'd 
go  up  there  now,  to-morrow,  and  take  the  dogs  along,  I  know 
as  you'll  git  fifty.'' 

"  Well,  if  that's  all  your  news,  Jem,  I  won't  give  you  much 
for  it ;  and,  as  for  going  into  the  mountains  to  look  after  par- 
tridges, you  don't  catch  me  at  it,  that's  all !"  said  Harry.  "  Is 
that  all?" 

"  Not  by  a  great  shot !"  answered  Jem,  grinning,  u  but  the 
truth  is,  I  know  you  won't  believe  me ;  but  I  can  tell  you 
what,  you  can  kill  a  big  fat  buck,  if  you'll  git  up  a  little  afore 
daylight !" 

"  A  buck,  Jem !  a  buck  near  here  ?"  inquired  Forester  and 
Archer  in  a  breath. 

"  I  told  you,  boys,  the  critter  couldn't  help  it ;  he's  stuck  to 
truth  just  so  long,  and  he  was  forced  to  lie,  or  else  he  would 
have  busted  !" 

"  It's  true,  by  thunder,"  answered  Jem  ;  "  I  wish  I  mayn't 
eat  nor  drink  nother,  if  there's  one  bit  of  lie  in  it ;  d — n  the 
bit,  Tom  !  I'm  in  airnest,  now,  right  down  ;  and  you  knows  as 
I  wouldn't  go  to  lie  about  it !" 

"  Well !  well !  where  was't,  Jem  ?" 

"  Why,  he  lies,  I  guess,  now,  in  that  little  thickest  swamp  of 
all,  jist  in  the  eend  of  the  swale  atween  Round  Top  and  Rocky 
Hill,  right  in  the  pines  and  laurels  ;  leastways  I  druv  him  down 
there  with  the  dogs,  and  I  swon  that  he  never  crossed  into  the 
open  meadow  ;  and  I  went  round,  and  made  a  circle  like  clean 
round  about  him,  and  darn  the  dog  trailed  on  him  no  how  ; 
and  bein'  as  he's  hard  hot,  I  guess  he'll  stay  there  since  he  har- 
bored." 

"  Hard  hit,  is  he  !  why,  did  you  get  a  shot  at  him  ?" 

"  A  fair  one,"  Jem  replied  ;  "  not  three  rod  off  from  rne  ;  he 
jumped  up  out  of  the  channel  of  Stony  Brook,  where,  in  a  sort 
o'  bend,  there  was  a  lot  of  bushes,  sumach  and  winter-green, 
and  ferns  ;  he  skeart  me,  that's  a  fact,  or  I'd  a  killed  him.  He 
warn't  ten  yards  off  when  he  bounced  up  first,  but  I  pulled 
without  cocking,  and  when  I'd  got  my  gun  fixed,  he'd  got  off'  a 
little  piece,  and  I'd  got  nauthen  but  fox-shot,  but  I  hot  him  jist 
in  the  side  of  the  flank  ;  the  blood  flew  out  like  winkin',  and  the 
hounds  arter  him  like  mad,  up  and  down,  and  round  and  back, 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  141 

and  he  a  kind  of  weak  like,  and  they'd  overhauled  him  once  and 
again,  and  tackled  him,  but  there  was  only  four  on  them,  and 
so  he  beat  them  off  like  every  time,  and  onned  again  !  They 
couldn't  hold  him  no  how,  till  I  got  up  to  them,  and  I  couldn't 
fix  it  no  how,  so  as  I'd  git  another  shot  at  him ;  but  it  was 
growin'  dark  fast,  and  I  flogged  off  the  sluts  arter  a  deal  o' 
work,  and  viewed  him  down  the  old  blind  run-way  into  the 
swale  eend,  where  I  telled  you ;  and  then  I  laid  still  quite  a 
piece ;  and  then  I  circled  round,  to  see  if  he'd  quit  it,  and  not 
one  dog  tuk  track  on  him,  and  so  I  feels  right  sartain  as  he's  in 
that  hole  now,  and  will  be  in  the  mornin',  if  so  be  we  goes  there 
in  time,  afore  the  sun's  up.'' 

"  That  we  can  do  easily  enough,"  said  Archer,  "  what  do  you 
say,  Tom  ?  Is  it  worth  while  ?" 

"  Why,"  answered  old  Draw  instantly,  "  if  so  be  only  we 
could  be  sartain  that  the  darned  critter  warn't  a  lyin',  there 
couldn't  be  no  doubt  about  it;  for  if  the  buck  did  lay  up  there  this 
night,  why  he'll  be  there  to-morrow ;  and  if  so  be  he's  there, 
why  we  can  get  him  sure  !'' 

"  Well,  Jem,  what  have  you  got  to  say  now,"  said  the  Com- 
modore ;  "  is  it  the  truth  or  no  ?" 

"  Why,  darn  it  all,"  retorted  Jem,  "  harn't  I  just  told  you  it 
was  true ;  it's  most  blamed  hard  a  fellow  can't  be  believed  now 
— why,  Mr  Aircher,  did  I  ever  lie  to  you  ?" 

"Oh !  if  you  ask  me  that,''  said  Harry,  "you  know  I  must 
say  *  Yes  !' — for  you  have,  fifty  times  at  the  least  computation. 
Do  you  remember  the  day  you  towed  me  up  the  Decker's  run 
to  look  for  woodcock  ?" 

"  And  you  found  nothing,"  interrupted  Tom,  "  but " 

"  Oh  shut  up,  do,  Tom,"  broke  in  Forester,  "  and  let  us  hear 
about  this  buck.  If  we  agree  to  give  you  a  five  dollar  bill, 
Jem,  in  case  we  do  find  him  where  you  say,  what  will  you  be 
willing  to  forfeit  if  we  do  not  ?" 

"  You  may  shoot  at  me  !''  answered  Jem,  "  all  on  you — ivery 
one  on  you — at  forty  yards,  with  rifle  or  buckshot !'' 

"  It  certainly  is  very  likely  that  we  should  be  willing  to  get 
hanged  for  the  sake  of  shooting  such  a  mangy  hound  as  you, 
Jem,"  answered  Forester,  *'  when  one  could  shoot  a  good  clean 
dog — Tom's  Dash,  for  example — for  nothing !" 

"  Could  you  though  ?"  Tom  replied,  "  I'd  like  to  catch  you 
at  it,  my  dear  boy — I'd  wax  the  little  hide  off  of  you.  But 
come,  let  us  be  settling.  Is  it  a  lie  now,  Jeai ;  speak  out—is 


142  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

it  a  lie,  consarn  you  ?  for  if  it  be,  you'd  best  jest  say  't  out 
now,  and  save  your  bones  to-morrow.  Well,  boys,  the  critter's 
sulky,  so  most  like  it  is  true — and  I  guess  we'll  be  arter  him. 
We'll  be  up  bright  and  airly,  and  go  a  horseback,  and  if  he  be 
there,  we  can  kill  him  in  no  time  at  all,  and  be  right  back  to 
breakfast.  I'll  start  Jem  and  the  captain  here,  and  Dave  Seers, 
with  the  dogs,  an  hour  afore  us  !  and  let  them  come  right  down 
the  swale,  and  drive  him  to  the  open — Harry  and  Forester,  you 

two  can  ride  your  own  nags,  and  I'll  take  old  Roan,  and  A 

here  shall  have  the  colt." 

"  Very  well !  Timothy,  did  they  feed  well  to-night  ?  if  they 
did,  give  them  their  oats  very  early,  and  no  water.  I  know  it's 
too  bad  after  their  work  to-day,  but  we  shall  not  be  out  two  hours !'' 

"  Weel !  it's  no  matter  gin  they  were  oot  six,"  responded 
Timothy,  "  they  wadna  be  a  pin  the  waur  o't !" 

"  Take  out  my  rifle,  then — and  pick  some  buckshot  cartridges 
to  fit  the  bore  of  all  the  double  guns.  Frank's  got  his  rifle  ;  so 

you  can  take  my  heavy  single  gun — your  gauge  is  17,  A , 

quite  too  small  for  buckshot;  mine  is  11,  and  will  do  its  work 
clean  with  Ely's  cartridge  and  pretty  heavy  powder,  at  eighty- 
five  to  ninety  yards.  Tom's  bore  is  twelve,  and  I've  brought 
some  to  fit  his  old  double,  and  some,  too,  for  my  own  gun, 
though  it  is  almost  too  small !" 

"  What  gauge  is  yours,  Harry  ?" 

"  Fourteen  ;  which  I  consider  the  very  best  bore  possible  for 
general  shooting.  I  think  the  gunsmiths  are  running  headlong 
now  into  the  opposite  of  their  old  error — when  they  found  that 
6fteens  and  fourteens  outshot  vastly  the  old  small  calibres — 
fifty  years  since  no  guns  were  larger  than  eighteen,  and  few 
than  twenty;  they  are  now  quite  out-doing  it.  I  have  seen 
late-imported  guns  of  seven  pounds,  and  not  above  twenty-six 
inches  Jong,  with  eleven  and  even  ten  gauge  calibres  !  you  might 
as  well  shoot  with  a  blunderbus  at  once  F' 

"  They  would  tell  at  cock  in  close  summer  covert,"  answered 
A . 

"  For  a  man  who  can't  cover  his  bird  they  might,"  replied 
Harry  ;  "  but  you  may  rely  on  it  they  lose  three  times  as  much 
in  force  as  they  gain  in  the  space  they  cover  ;  at  forty  yards 
you  could  not  kill  even  a  woodcock  with  them  once  in  fifty 
times,  and  a  quail,  or  English  snipe,  at  that  distance  never !" 

"  What  do  you  think  the  right  length  and  weight,  then,  for 
an  eleven  bore  ?" 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  143 

**  Certainly  not  less  than  nine  pounds,  and  thirty  inches  ;  but 
I  would  prefer  ten  pounds  and  thirty-three  inches ;  though,  ex- 
cept for  a  fowl-gun  to  use  in  boat-shooting,  such  a  piece  would 
be  quite  too  ponderous  and  clumsy.  My  single  gun  is  eleven 
gauge,  eight  pounds  and  thirty-three  inches ;  and  even  with 
loose  shot  executes  superbly ;  but  with  Ely's  green  cartridge  I 
have  put  forty  BB  shot  into  a  square  of  two  and  a  half  feet  at 
one  hundred  and  twenty-five  yards ;  sharply  enough,  too,  to 
imbed  the  shot  so  firmly  in  the  fence  against  which  I  had  fixed 
my  mark,  that  it  required  a  good  strong  knife  to  get  them  out. 
This  1  propose  that  you  should  use  to-morrow,  with  a  l\  oz. 
SG  cartridge,  which  contains  eighteen  buck-shot,  and  which,  if 
you  get  a  shot  any  where  within  a  hundred  yards,  will  kill  him. 
as  dead,  1  warrant  it,  as  an  ounce  bullet." 

"  Which  you  intend  to  try,  I  fancy,"  added  Frank. 

"  Not  quite !  my  rifle  carries  eighteen  only  to  the  pound ; 
and  yours,  if  I  forget  not,  only  thirty-two." 

"  But  mine  is  double.'' 

"  Never  mind  that ;  thirty-two  will  not  execute  with  certainty 
above  a  hundred  and  fifty  yards !" 

"  And  how  far  in  the  devil's  name  would  you  have  it  execute, 
as  you  calls  it,"  asked  old  Tom. 

"  Three  hundred  !"  replied  Harry,  coolly. 

"  Thunder  !"  replied  Draw,  "  don't  tell  me  no  sich  thunderhV 
nonsense  ;  I'll  stand  all  day  and  be  shot  at,  like  a  Christmas 
turkey,  at  sixty  rods,  for  six-pence  a  shot,  any  how.'' 

"  I'll  bet  you  all  the  liquor  we  can  drink  while  we  are  here, 
Tom,"  answered  Harry,  "  that  I  hit  a  four  foot  target  at  three 
hundred  yards  to-morrow !" 

"  Off  hand  ?"  inquired  Tom,  with  an  attempt  at  a  sneer. 

"  Yes,  off  hand  !  and  no  shot  to  do  that  either ;  I  know  men 
— lots  of  them — who  would  bet  to  hit  a  foot*  square  at  that 
distance !'' 

*  When  this  was  written  strong  exception  was  taken  to  it  by  a  Southern 
writer  in  the  Spirit  of  the  Times.  Had  that  gentleman  known  what  is  the 
practice  of  the  heavy  Tyrolese  rifle  he  would  not  have  written  so  confi- 
dently. But  it  is  needless  to  go  so  far  as  to  the  Tyrol.  There  is  a  well 
known  rifle-shot  in  New  York,  who  can  perform  the  feat,  any  day,  which 
the  Southern  writer  scoffed  at  as  utterly  impossible. 

Scrope  on  Deerstalking  will  show  to  any  impartial  reader's  satisfaction, 
that  stags  in  the  Highlands  are  rarely  lulled  within  200  and  generally  be- 
yond 300  yards'  distance. 


144  WARWICK   WOOBLANDS, 

4i  Well !  you  can't  hit  four,  no  how  /" 

"  Will  you  bet «" 

«  Sartain  !" 

"  Very  well — Done — Twenty  dollars  I  will  stake  against  a£l 
the  liquor  we  drink  while  we're  here.  Is  it  a  bet  ?" 

"  Yes  !  Done  !"  cried  Tom — "  at  the  first  shot,  you  know  ;  I 
gives  no  second  chances." 

"  Very  well,  as  you  please  ! — I'm  sure  of  it,  that's  all- 
Lord,  Frank,  how  we  will  drink  and  treat — I  shall  invite  all  the 
town  up  here  to-morrow — Come  ! — One  more  round  for  luck, 
and  then  to  bed !" 

"  Content  !"  cried  A ;  "  but  I  mean  Mr.  Draw  to  have 

an  argument  to-morrow  night  about  this  point  of  Setter  vs. 
Pointer  !  How  do  you  say,  Harry  ? — which  is  best  ?" 

"  Oh  !  I'll  be  Judge  and  Jury," — answered  Archer — "-and 
you  shall  plead  before  me ;  and  I'll  make  up  my  mind  in  the 
meantime  !'J 

"  He's  for  me,  any  how," — shouted  Tom — "  Darn  it  all, 
Harry,  you  knows  you  wouldn't  own  a  pinter — no,  not  if  it  was 
gin  you  !" 

*'  I  believe  you  are  about  right  there,  old  fellow,  so  far  as  this 
country  goes  at  least  !J> — said  Archer — "  different  dogs  for 
different  soils  and  seasons — and,  in  my  judgment,  setters  are 
far  the  best  this  side  the  Atlantic — but  it  is  late  now,  and  I 
can't  stand  chattering  here — good  night — you  shall  have  as 
much  dog-talk  as  you  like  to-morrow." 


THE  OUTLYING  STAG. 

IT  was  still  pitch  dark,  although  the  skies  were  quite  clear  and 
doudless,  when  Harry,  Frank,  and  the  Commodore  re-assembled 
on  the  following  morning,  in  Tom's  best  parlor,  preparatory  to 
the  stag  hunt  which,  as  determined  on  the  previous  night,  was 
to  be  their  first  sporting  move  in  the  valley. 

Early,  however,  as  it  was,  Timothy  had  contrived  to  make  a 
glorious  fire  upon  the  hearth,  and  to  lay  out  a  slight  breakfast  of 
biscuits,  butter,  and  cold  beef,  flankecl  by  a  square  case-bottle  of 
Jamaica,  and  a  huge  jorum  of  boiled  milk.  Tom  Draw  had  not 
yet  made  his  appearance,  but  the  sound  of  his  ponderous  tramr 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  145 

mixed  with  strange  oaths  and  loud  vociferations,  showed  that  he 
was  on  foot,  and  ready  for  the  field. 

"  I'll  tell  you  what,  Master  A ,"  said  Archer,  as  he  stood 

with  his  back  to  the  fire,  mixing  some  rum  with  sugar  and  cold 
water,  previous  to  pouring  the  hot  milk  into  it — u  You'll  be  so 
cold  in  that  light  jacket  on  the  stand  this  morning,  that  you'll 
never  be  able  to  hold  your  gun  true,  if  you  get  a  shot.  It 
froze  quite  hard  last  night,  and  there's  some  wind,  too,  this 
morning." 

"  That's  very  true,"  replied  the  Commodore,  "  but  devil  a 
thing  have  I  got  else  to  wear,  unless  I  put  on  my  great  coat, 
and  that's  too  much  the  other  way — too  big  and  clumsy  alto- 
gether. I  shall  do  well  enough,  I  dare  say  ;  and  after  all,  my 
•drilling  jacket  is  not  much  thinner  than  your  fustian." 

"  No,"  said  Harry,  "  but  you  don't  fancy  that  I'm  going  out 
in  this,  do  you  ?  No  !  no  !  I'm  too  old  a  hand  for  that  sort  of 
thing — I  know  that  to  shoot  well,  a  man  must  be  comfortable, 
and  I  mean  to  be  so.  Why,  man,  I  shall  put  on  my  Canadian 
hunting  shirt  over  this  " — and  with  the  word  he  slipped  a  loose 
frock,  shaped  much  like  a  wagoner's  smock,  or  a  Flemish  blouse, 
over  his  head,  with  large  full  sleeves,  reaching  almost  to  his 
knees,  and  belted  round  his  waist,  by  a  broad  worsted  sash. 
This  excellent  garment  was  composed  of  a  thick  coarse  home- 
spun woollen,  bottle-green  in  color,  with  fringe  and  bindings  of 
clingy  red,  to  match  the  sash  about  his  waist.  From  the  sash 
was  suspended  an  otter  skin  pouch,  containing  bullets  and 
patches,  nipple  wrench  and  turn-screw,  a  bit  of  dry  tow,  an  oiled 
rag,  and  all  the  indispensables  for  rifle  cleaning ;  while  into  it 
were  thrust  two  knives — one  a  broad  two-edged  implement,  with 
a  stout  buck-horn  haft,  and  a  bhicle  of  at  least  twelve  inches — 
the  other  a  much  smaller  weapon,  not  being,  hilt  and  all,  half 
the  length  of  the  other's  blade,  but  very  strong,  sharp  as  a  razor, 
and  of  surpassing  temper.  While  he  was  fitting  all  these  in 
their  proper  places,  and  slinging  under  his  left  arm  a  small 
buffalo  horn  of  powder,  he  continued  talking — 

"  Now,"  he  said,  "  if  you  take  my  advice,  you'll  go  into  my 
room,  and  there,  hanging  against  the  wall,  you'll  find  my  winter 
shooting  jacket,  I  had  it  made  last  year  when  I  went  up  to 
Maine,  of  pilot  cloth,  lined  throughout  with  flannel.  It  will  fit 
you  just  as  well  as  your  own,  for  we're  pretty  much  of  a  size. 
Frank,  there,  will  wear  his  old  monkey  jacket,  the  skirts  of 
which  he  razeed  last  winter  for  the  very  purpose.  Ah,  here  is 
7 


146  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

Brower — just  run  up,  Brower,  and  bring  down  my  shooting 
jacket  off  the  wall  from  behind  the  door — look  sharp,  will  you  ! 
Now,  then,  I  shall  load,  and  I  advise  you  both  to  do  likewise  ; 
for  it's  bad  work  doing  that  same  with  cold  fingers." 

Thus  saying,  he  walked  to  the  corner,  and  brought  out  his 
rifle,  a  short  heavy  double  barrel,  with  two  grooves  only,  carry- 
ing a  bitted  ball  of  twelve  to  the  pound,  quite  plain  but  ex- 
quisitely finished.  Before  proceeding,  however,  to  load,  he  tried 
the  passage  of  the  nipple  with  a  fine  needle — three  or  four  of 
which,  thrust  into  a  cork,  and  headed  with  sealing  wax,  formed 
a  portion  of  the  contents  of  his  pouch — brushed  the  cone,  and 
the  inside  of  the  hammer,  carefully,  and  wiped  them,  to  con* 
elude,  with  a  small  piece  of  clean  white  kid — then  measuring 
his  powder  out  exactly,  into  a  little  charger,  screwed  to  the  end 
of  his  ramrod,  he  inverted  the  piece,  and  introduced  the  rod 
upward  till  the  cup  reached  the  chamber ;  when,  righting  the 
gun,  he  withdrew  it,  leaving  the  powder  all  lodged  safely  at  the 
breech,  without  the  loss  of  a  single  grain  in  the  groovings.  Next, 
he  chose  out  a  piece  of  leather,  the  finest  grained  kid,  without 
a  seam  or  wrinkle,  slightly  greased  with  the  best  watch-maker's 
oil — selected  a  ball  perfectly  round  and  true— laid  the  patch 
upon  the  muzzle,  and  placing  the  bullet  exactly  in  the  centre 
over  the  bore,  buried  it  with  a  single  rap  of  a  small  lignum  vitse 
mallet,  which  hung  from  his  button-hole  ;  -and  then,  with  but  a 
trifling  effort,  drove  it  home  by  one  steady  thrust  of  the  stout 
copper-headed  charging  rod.  This  done,  he  again  inspected  the 
cone,  and  seeing  that  the  powder  was  forced  quite  up  into  sight, 
picked  out,  with  the  same  anxious  scrutiny  that  had  marked  all 
of  his  proceedings,  a  copper  cap,  which  he  pronounced  sure  to 
go,  applied  it  to  the  nipple,  crushed  it  down  firmly,  with  the 
hammer,  which  he  then  drew  back  to  half-cock,  and  bolted. 
Then  he  set  the  piece  down  by  the  fireside,  drained  his  hot  jorum, 
and — 

"  That  fellow  will  do  his  work,  and  no  mistake/'  said  he. 

"  Now  A ,  here  is  my  single  gun  " — handing  to  him,  as  he 

spoke,  one  of  the  handsomest  Westley  Richards  a  sportsman 
ever  handled — "  thirty-three  inches,  nine  pounds  and  eleven 
gauge.  Put  in  one-third  above  that  charger,  which  is  its  usual 
load,  and  one  of  those  green  cartridges,  and  I'll  be  bound  that 
it  will  execute  at  eighty  paces ;  and  that  is  more  than  Master 
Frank  there  can  say  for  his  Manton  Rifle,  at  least  if  he  loads  it 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  147 

with  bullets  patched  in  that  slovenly  and  most  unsportsmanlike 
fashion." 

"  I  should  like  to  know  what  the  deuce  you  mean  by  slovenly 
and  unsportsmanlike,"  said  Frank,  pulling  out  of  his  breast 
pocket  a  couple  of  bullets,  carefully  sewed  up  in  leather — "  it  is 
the  best  plan  possible,  and  saves  lots  of  time — you  see  I  can 
just  shove  my  balls  in  at  once,  without  any  bother  of  fitting 
patches." 

"  Yes,"  replied  Harry,  "  and  five  to  one  the  seam,  which,  how- 
ever neatly  it  is  drawn,  must  leave  a  slight  ridge,  will  cross  the 
direction  of  the  grooving,  and  give  the  ball  a  counter  movement ; 
either  destroying  altogether  the  rotatory  motion  communicated 
by  the  rifling,  or  causing  it  to  take  a  direction  quite  out  of  the 
true  line  ;  accordingly  as  the  counteraction  is  conveyed  near  the 
breech,  or  near  the  muzzle  of  the  piece." 

u  Will  so  trifling  a  cause  produce  so  powerful  an  effect  ?'*  in- 
quired the  Commodore. 

"  The  least  variation,  whether  of  concavity  or  convexity  in  the 
bullet,  will  do  so  unquestionably — and  I  cannot  see  why  the 
same  thing  in  a  covering  superinduced  to  the  ball  should  not 
have  the  same  effect.  Even  a  hole  in  a  pellet  of  shot,  will  cause 
it  to  leave  the  charge,  and  fly  off  at  a  tangent.  I  was  once 
shooting  in  the  fens  of  the  Isle  of  Ely,  and  fired  at  a  mallard 
sixty  or  sixty-five  yards  off,  with  double  B  shot,  when  to  my 
great  amazement  a  workman — digging  peat  at  about  the  same 
distance  from  me  with  the  bird,  but  at  least  ninety  yards  to  the 
right  of  the  mallard — roared  out  lustily  that  I  had  killed  him. 
I  saw  that  the  drake  was  knocked  over  as  dead  as  a  stone,  and 
consequently  laughed  at  the  fellow,  and  set  it  down  as  a  cool 
trick  to  extort  money,  not  uncommon  among  the  fen  men,  as 
applied  to  members  of  the  University.  I  had  just  finished  load- 
ing, and  my  retriever  had  just  brought  in  the  dead  bird,  which 
was  quite  riddled,  cut  up  evidently  by  the  whole  body  of  the 
charge — both  the  wings  broken,  one  in  three  places,  one  leg 
almost  dissevered,  and  several  shots  in  the  neck  and  body — when 
up  came  my  friend,  and  sure  enough  he  was  hit — one  pellet  had 
struck  him  on  the  cheek  bone,  and  was  imbedded  in  the  skin. 
Half  a  crown,  and  a  lotion  of  whiskey — not  applied  to  the  part, 
but  taken  inwardly — soon  proved  a  sovereign  medicine,  and 
picking  out  the  shot  with  the  point  of  a  needle,  I  found  a  hole 
in  it  big  enough  to  admit  a  pin's  head,  and  about  the  twentieth 
part  of  an  inch  in  depth.  This  I  should  think  is  proof  enough 


148  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

for  you — but,  besides  this,  I  have  seen  bullets  in  pistol-shooting 
play  strange  vagaries,  glancing  off  from  the  target  at  all  sorts  of 
queer  angles." 

"  Well !  well !''  replied  Frank,  "  my  rifle  shoots  true  enough 
for  me — true  enough  to  kill  generally — and  who  the  deuce  can 
be  at  the  bother  of  your  pragmatical  preparations  !  I  am  sure 
it  might  be  said  of  you,  as  it  was  of  James  the  First,  of  most 
pacific  and  pedantic  memory,  that  you  are  i  Captain  of  arts  and 
Clerk  of  arms  ' — at  least  you  are  a  very  pedant  in  gunnery." 

"  No  !  no  !"  said  A ;  "  you're  wrong  there  altogether, 

Master  Forester  ;  there  is  nothing  on  earth  that  makes  so  great 
a  difference  in  sportsmanship  as  the  observation  of  small  things. 
I  don't  call  him  a  sportsman  who  can  walk  stoutly,  and  kill  well, 
unless  he  can  give  causes  for  effects — unless  he  knows  the  haunts 
and  habits  both  of  his  game  and  his  dogs — unless  he  can  give 
a  why  for  every  wherefore  !" 

"  Then  devil  a  bit  will  you  ever  call  me  one," — answered 
Frank — "  For  I  can't  be  at  the  trouble  of  thinking  about  it." 

"  Stuff — humbug — folly  " — interrupted  Archer — "  you  know 
a  great  deal  better  than  that — and  so  do  we,  too ! — you're  only 
cranky  !  a  little  cranky,  Frank,  and  given  to  defending  any  folly 
you  commit  without  either  rhyme  or  reason— as  when  you  tried 
to  persuade  me  that  it  is  the  safest  thing  in  nature  to  pour  gun- 
powder out  of  a  canister  into  a  pound  flask,  with  a  lighted  cigar 
between  your  teeth  ;  to  demonstrate  which  you  had  scarcely 
screwed  the  top  of  the  horn  on,  before  the  lighted  ashes  fell  all 
over  it — had  they  done  so  a  moment  sooner,  we  should  all  have 
been  blown  out  of  the  room." 

By  this  time,  the  Commodore  had  donned  Harry's  winter 
jacket,  and  Frank,  grumbling  and  paradoxizing  all  the  while, 
had  loaded  his  rifle,  and  buttoned  up  his  pea-jacket,  when  in 
stalked  Tom,  swathed  up  to  his  chin  in  a  stout  dreadnought  coat. 

u  What  are  ye  lazin'  here  about !"  he  shouted,  "you're  niver 
ready  no  how.  Jem's  been  agone  these  two  hours,  and  we'll 
jest  be  too  late,  and  miss  gittin'  a  shot — if  so  be  there  be  a  buck 
— which  I'll  be  sworn  there  arn't !" 

"Ha!  ha!"  the  Commodore  burst  out;  "ha!  ha!  ha!  1 
should  like  to  know  which  side  the  laziness  has  been  on  this 
morning,  Mister  Draw.'' 

"  On  little  wax  skin's  there,"  answered  the  old  man,  as  quick 
as  lightning ;  "  the  little  snoopin'  critter  carn't  find  his  gloves 
now  ;  though  the  nags  is  at  the  door,  and  we  all  ready. 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  149 

drink,  boys,  while  he's  lookin'  arter  'em — and  then  when  he's 
found  them,  and's  jest  a  gittin'  on  his  horse,  he'll  find  he's  left 
his  powder-horn  or  knife,  or  somethin'  else,  behind  him  ;  and 
then  we'll  drink  agin,  while  he  snoops  back  to  fetch  it." 

"  You  be  hanged,  you  old  rascal,"  replied  Forester,  a  little 
bothered  by  the  huge  shouts  of  laughter  which  followed  this 
most  strictly  accurate  account  of  his  accustomed  method  of  pro- 
ceeding ;  an  account  which,  by  the  way,  was  fully  justified  not 
twenty  minutes  afterward,  by  his  galloping  back,  neck  or  nothing, 
to  get  his  pocket  handkerchief,  which  he  had  left  "  in  course" 
as  Tom  said,  in  his  dressing-gown  beside  the  fire. 

"  Come,  bustle — bustle  !"  Harry  added,  as  he  put  on  his 
hunting  cap  and  pulled  a  huge  pair  of  fen  boots  on,  reaching  to 
the  midthigh,  which  Timothy  had  garnished  with  a  pair  of  bright 
English  spurs.  In  another  minute  they  were  all  on  horseback, 
trotting  away  at  a  brisk  pace  toward  the  little  glen,  wherein,  ac- 
cording to  Jem's  last  report,  the  stag  was  harbored.  It  was  in 
vain  that  during  their  quick  ride  the  old  man  was  entreated  to 
inform  them  where  they  were  to  take  post,  or  what  they  were 
to  do,  as  he  would  give  them  no  reply,  nor  any  information 
whatever. 

At  last,  however,  when  Forester  rejoined  them,  after  his  re- 
turn to  the  village,  he  turned  short  off  from  the  high  road  to 
the  left,  and  as  he  passed  a  set  of  bars  into  a  wild  hill  pasture, 
struck  into  a  hard  gallop. 

Before  them  lay  the  high  and  ridgy  head  of  Round  Top,  his 
flanks  sloping  toward  them,  in  two  broad  pine-clad  knobs,  with 
a  wild  streamlet  brawling  down  between  them,  and  a  thick  tan- 
gled swamp  of  small  extent,  but  full  of  tall  dense  thornbushes, 
matted  with  vines  and  cat-briers,  and  carpeted  with  a  rich  under- 
growth of  fern  and  wintergreen,  and  whortleberries.  To  the 
right  and  left  of  the  two  knobs  or  spurs  just  mentioned,  were 
two  other  deep  gorges,  or  dry  channels,  bare  of  brushwood,  and 
stony — rock-walled,  with  steep  precipitous  ledges  toward  the 
mountain,  but  sloping  easily  up  to  the  lower  ridges.  As  they 
reached  the  first  of  these,  Tom  motioned  Forester  to  stop. 

"  Stand  here,"  he  whispered,  "  close  in  here,  jest  behind  this 
here  crag — and  look  out  hereaways  toward  the  village.  If  he 
comes  down  this  runway,  kill  him,  but  mind  you  doosn't  show 
a  hair  out  of  this  corner ;  for  Archer,  he'll  stand  next,  and  if  so 
be  he  crosses  from  the  swamp  hole  hereaways,  you'll  chance  to 


150  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

fet  a  bullet.     Be  still,  now,  as   a  mouse,  and  tie  your  horse 
ere  in  the  cove  ! — Now,  lads'7 — 

And  off  he  set  again,  rounded  the  knob,  and  making  one 
slight  motion  toward  the  nook,  wherein  he  wished  that  Harry 
should  keep  guard,  wheeled  back  in  utter  silence,  and  very 
slowly — for  they  were  close  to  the  spot  wherein,  as  they  sup- 
posed, the  object  of  their  chase  was  laid  up ;  and  as  yet  but  two 
of  his  paths  were  guarded  toward  the  plain ;  Jem  and  his  com- 
rades having  long  since  got  with  the  hounds  into  his  rear,  and 
waiting  only  for  the  rising  of  the  sun  to  lay  them  on,  and  push 
along  the  channel  of  the  brook. 

This  would  compel  him  to  break  covert,  either  directly  from 
the  swamp,  or  by  one  of  the  dry  gorges  mentioned.  Now, 
therefore,  was  the  crisis  of  the  whole  matter  ;  for  if — before  the 
other  passes  were  made  good — the  stag  should  take  alarm,  he 
might  steal  off  without  affording  a  chance  of  a  shot,  and  get 
into  the  mountains  to  the  right,  where  they  might  hunt  him  for 
a  week  in  vain. 

No  marble  statue  could  stand  more  silently  or  still  than 
Harry  and  his  favorite  gray,  who,  with  erected  ears  and  watch- 
ful eye,  trembling  a  little  with  excitement,  seemed  to  know 
what  he  was  about,  and  to  enjoy  it  no  less  keenly  than  his  rider. 
Tom  and  the  Commodore,  quickening  their  pace  as  they  got 
out  of  ear-shot,  retraced  their  steps  quite  back  to  the  turnpike 
road,  along  which  Harry  saw  them  gallop  furiously,  in  a  few 
minutes,  and  turn  up,  half  a  mile  off,  toward  the  further  gulley 
— he  saw  no  more,  however ;  though  he  felt  certain  that  the 
Commodore  was,  scarce  ten  minutes  after  he  lost  sight  of  them, 
standing  within  twelve  paces  of  him,  at  the  further  angle  of  the 
swamp — Tom  having  warily  determined  that  the  two  single 
guns  should  take  post  together,  while  the  two  doubles  should 
be  placed  where  the  wild  quarry  could  get  off  encountering  but 
a  single  sportsman. 

It  was  a  period  of  intense  excitement  before  the  sun  rose, 
though  it  was  of  short  duration — but  scarcely  had  his  first  rays 
touched  the  open  meadow,  casting  a  huge  gray  shadow  from 
the  rounded  hill  which  covered  half  the  valley,  while  all  the 
farther  slope  was  laughing  in  broad  light,  the  mist  wreaths  curl- 
ing up,  thinner  and  thinner  every  moment,  from  the  broad 
streamlet  in  the  bottom,  which  here  and  there  flashed  out  ex- 
ultingly  from  its  wood-covered  margins — scarcely  had  his  first 
rays  topped  the  hill,  before  a  distant  shout  came  swelling  on 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  151 

the  air,  down  the  ravine,  announcing  Jem's  approach.  No 
hound  gave  tongue,  however,  nor  did  a  rustle  in  the  brake,  or 
any  sound  of  life,  give  token  of  the  presence  of  the  game — 
louder  and  nearer  drew  the  shouts — and  now  Harry  himself  be- 
gan to  doubt  if  there  were  any  truth  in  Jem's  relation,  when 
suddenly  the  sharp,  quick  crack  of  Forester's  rifle  gave  token 
that  the  game  was  afoot — a  loud  yell  from  that  worthy  followed. 

"  Look  out !     Mark- — back — mark  back  !" 

And  keenly  Archer  did  look  out,  and  warily  did  he  listen — 
once  he  detected,  or  fancied  he  detected,  a  rustling  of  the  under- 
wood, and  the  crack  of  a  dry  stick,  and  dropping  his  reins  on 
the  horse's  neck,  he  cocked  his  rifle — but  the  sound  was  not  re- 
peated, nor  did  any  thing  come  into  sight — so  he  let  down  the 
hammer  once  again,  and  resumed  his  silent  watch,  saying  to 
himself — 

"  Frank  fired  too  quick,  and  he  has  headed  up  the  brook  to 
Jem.  If  he  is  forward  enough  now,  we  shall  have  him  back  in- 
stantly, with  the  hounds  at  his  heels ;  but  if  he  has  loitered 
and  hung  back,  *  over  the  hills  and  far  away'  is  the  word  for 
this  time." 

*  But  Jem  was  in  his  place,  and  in  another  moment  a  long- 
whoop  came  ringing  down  the  glen,  and  the  shrill  yelping  rally 
of  the  hounds  as  they  all  opened  on  a  view  together !  Fiercer 
and  wilder  grew  the  hubbub !  And  now  the  eager  watcher 
might  hea»r  the  brushwood  torn  in  all  directions  by  the  impetu- 
ous passage  of  the  wild  deer  and  his  inveterate  pursuers. 

"  Now,  then,  it  is  old  Tom's  chance,  or  ours,"  he  thought, 
"  for  he  will  not  try  Forester  again,  I  warrant  him,  and  we  are 
all  down  wind  of  him — so  he  can't  judge  of  our  whereabouts." 

In  another  second  the  bushes  crashed  to  his  left  hand,  and 
behind  him,  while  the  dogs  were  raving  scarcely  a  pistol-shot 
off,  in  the  tangled  swamp.  Yet  he  well  knew  that  if  the  stag 
should  break  there  it  would  be  A 's  shot,  and,  though  anx- 
ious, he  kept  his  eye  fixed  steadily  on  his  own  point,  holding 
his  good  piece  cocked  and  ready. 

"  Mark !  Harry,  mark  him !" — a  loud  yell  from  the  Commodore. 

The  stag  had  broken  midway  between  them,  in  full  sight  of 

A ,  and  seeing  him,  had  wheeled  off  to  the  right.     He  was 

now  sweeping  onward  across  the  open  field  with  high  graceful 
bounds,  tossing  his  antlered  head  aloft,  as  if  already  safe,  and 
little  hurt,  if  anything,  by  Jem  Lyn's  boasted  shot  of  the  last 
evening.  The  gray  stood  motionless,  trembling,  however,  pal- 


152  WARWICK   WOODLANDS, 

pably,  in  every  limb,  with  eagerness — his  ears  laid  flat  upon  his 
neck,  and  cowering  a  little,  as  if  he  feared  the  shot,  which  it 
would  seem  his  instinct  told  him  to  expect.  Harry  had  dropped 
his  reins  once  more,  and  levelled  his  unerring  rifle — yet  for  a 

moment's  space  he  paused,  waiting  for  A to  fire  ;  there  was 

no  hurry  for  himself,  nay,  a  few  seconds  more  would  give  him  a 
yet  fairer  shot,  for  the  buck  now  was  running  partially  toward 
him,  so  that  a  moment  more  would  place  him  broadside  on, 
and  within  twenty  paces. 

"  Bang  !"  came  the  full  and  round  report  of  A 's  large 

shot-gun,  fired  before  the  beast  was  fifteen  yards  away  from 
him.  He  had  aimed  at  the  head,  as  he  was  forced  to  do,  lest 
he  should  spoil  the  haunches,  for  he  was  running  now  directly 
from  him — and  had  the  buck  been  fifty  paces  off  he  would  have 
killed  him  dead,  lodging  his  whole  charge,  or  the  best  part  of 
it,  in  the  junction  of  the  neck  and  skull — but  as  it  was,  the 
cartridge — the  green  cartridge — had  not  yet  spread  at  all ;  nor 
had  one  buckshot  left  the  case  !  Whistling  like  a  single  ball, 
as  it  passed  Harry's  front  eight  or  nine  yards  off,  it  drove,  as 
his  quick  eye  discovered,  clean  through  the  stag's  right  ear,  al- 
most dissevering  it,  and  making  the  animal  bound  six  feet  off* 
the  green  sward. 

Just  as  he  touched  the  earth  again,  alighting  from  his  mighty 
spring,  with  an  aim  sure  and  steady,  and  a  cool  practised  finger, 
the  marksman  drew  his  trigger,  and,  quick,  as  light,  the  piece — 
well  loaded,  as  its  dry  crack  announced — discharged  its  ponder- 
ous missile  !  But,  bad  luck  on  it,  even  at  that  very  instant, 
just  in  the  point  of  time  wherein  the  charge  was  ignited, 
eighteen  or  twenty  quail,  flushed  by  the  hubbub  of  the  hounds, 
rose  with  a  loud  and  startling  whirr,  on  every  side  of  the  gray 
horse,  under  his  belly  and  about  his  ears,  so  close  as  almost  to 
brush  him  with  their  wings — he  bolted  and  reared  up — yet 
even  at  that  disadvantage  the  practised  rifleman  missed  not  his 
aim  entirely,  though  he  erred  somewhat,  and  the  wound  in  con- 
sequence was  not  quite  deadly. 

The  ball,  which  he  had  meant  for  the  heart,  his  sight  being 
taken  under  the  fore-shoulder,  was  raised  and  thrown  forward 
by  the  motion  of  the  horse,  and  passed  clean  through  the  neck 
close  to  the  blade  bone.  Another  leap,  wilder  and  loftier  than 
the  last !  yet  still  the  stag  dashed  onward,  with  the  blood  gush- 
ing out  in  streams  from  the  wide  wound,  though  as  yet  neither 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  153 

speed  nor  strength  appeared  to  be  impaired,  so  fleetly  did  he 
scour  the  meadow. 

"He  will  cross  Frank  yet!"  cried  Archer.  "Mark!  mark 
him,  Forester  1" 

But,  as  he  spoke,  he  set  his  rifle  down  against  the  fence,  and 
holloaed  to  the  hounds,  which  instantly,  obedient  to  his  well- 
known  and  cheery  whoop,  broke  covert  in  a  body,  and  settled, 
heads  up  and  sterns  down,  to  the  blazing  scent. 

At  the  same  moment  A came  trotting  out  from  his  post, 

gun  in  hand ;  while  at  a  thundering  gallop,  blaspheming  aw- 
fully as  he  came  on,  and  rating  them  for  "  know-nothins,  and 
blunderin'  etarnal  spoil-sports,"  Tom  rounded  the  farther  hill, 
and  spurred  across  the  level.  By  this  time  they  were  all  in 
sight  of  Forester,  who  stood  on  foot,  close  to  his  horse,  in  the 
mouth  of  the  last  gorge,  the  buck  running  across  him  sixty 
yards  off,  and  quartering  a  little  from  him  toward  the  road ; 
the  hounds  were,  however,  all  midway  between  him  and  the 
quarry,  and  as  the  ground  sloped  steeply  from  the  marksman, 
he  was  afraid  of  firing  low — but  took  a  long,  and,  as  it  seemed, 
sure  aim  at  the  head. 

The  rifle  flashed — a  tine  flew,  splintered  by  the  bullet,  from 
the  brow  antler,  not  an  inch  above  the  eye. 

"  Give  him  the  other !"  shouted  Archer.  "  Give  him  the 
other  barrel  I" 

But  Frank  shook  his  head  spitefully,  and  dropped  the  muzzle 
of  his  piece. 

"By  thunder!  then,  he's  forgot  his  bullets — and  hadn't 
nothen  to  load  up  agen,  when  he  missed  the  first  time !'' 

"  Ha  !  ha !  ha  !''  roared  once  again  the  Commodore — "  ha  ! 
ha  !  hah  ! — ha !  ha  !"  till  rock  and  mountain  rang  again. 

"  By  the  Etarnal !"  exclaimed  Draw,  perfectly  frantic  with  pas- 
sion and  excitement — "By  thunder!  A ,  I  guess  you'd  laugh 

if  your  best  friends  was  all  a  dyin'  at  your  feet.  You  would  for 
sartain  !  But  look,  look  ! — what  the  plague's  Harry  goin'  at  ?'' 

For  when  he  saw  that  Forester  had  now,  for  some  reason  or 
other,  no  farther  means  of  stopping  the  stag's  career,  Archer 
had  set  spurs  to  his  horse,  and  dashed  away  at  a  hard  furious 
gallop  after  the  wounded  buck.  The  hounds,  which  had  lost  sight 
of  it  as  it  leaped  a  high  stone  wall  with  much  brush  round  the 
base  of  it,  were  running  fast  and  furious  on  the  scent — but  still, 
though  flagging  somewhat  in  his  speed,  the  stag  was  leaving 
them.  He  had  turned,  as  the  last  shot  struck  his  horns,  down 
7* 


164  WARWICK  WOODLANDS. 

hill,  as  if  to  cross  the  valley ;  but  immediately,  as  if  perceiving 
that  he  had  passed  the  last  of  his  enemies,  turned  up  again  to- 
ward the  mountain,  describing  an  arc,  almost,  in  fact,  a  semi- 
circle, from  the  point  where  he  had  broken  covert  to  that — an- 
other gully,  at  perhaps  a  short  mile's  distance — from  which  he 
was  now  aiming. 

Across  the  chord,  then,  of  this  arc,  Harry  was  driving  furious- 
ly, with  the  intent,  as  it  would  seem,  to  cut  him  off  from  the 
gulley — the  stone  wall  crossed  his  line,  but  not  a  second  did  he 
pause  for  it,  but  gave  his  horse  both  spurs,  and  lifting  him  a 
little,  landed  him  safely  at  the  other  side.  Frank  mounted 

rapidly,  dashed  after  him,  and  soon  passed  A ,  who  was 

less  aptly  mounted  for  a  chase — he  likewise  topped  the  wall, 
and  disappeared  beyond  it,  though  the  stones  flew,  where  the 
bay  struck  the  coping  with  his  heels. 

All  pluck  to  the  back-bone,  the  Commodore  craned  not  nor 
hesitated,  but  dashed  the  colt,  for  the  first  time  in  his  life,  at 
the  high  barrier — he  tried  to  stop,  but  could  not,  so  powerfully 
did  his  rider  cram  him — leaped  short,  and  tumbled  head  over 
heels,  carrying  half  the  wall  away  with  him,  and  leaving  a  gap 
as  if  a  wagon  had  passed  through  it — to  Tom's  astonishment 
and  agony — for  he  supposed  the  colt  destroyed  forever. 

Scarcely,  however,  had  A gained  his  feet,  before  a  sight 

met  his  eyes,  which  made  him  leave  the  colt,  and  run  as  fast 
as  his  legs  could  carry  him  toward  the  scene  of  action. 

The  stag,  seeing  his  human  enemy  so  near,  had  strained 
every  nerve  to  escape,  and  Harry,  desperately  rash  and  daring, 
seeing  he  could  not  turn  or  head  him,  actually  spurred  upon 
him  counter  to  broadside,  in  hope  to  ride  him  down ;  foiled 
once  again,  in  this — his  last  hope,  as  it  seemed — he  drew  his 
longest  knife,  and  as — a  quarter  of  a  second  too  late  only — he 
crossed  behind  the  buck,  he  swung  himself  half  out  of  his 
saddle,  and  striking  a  full  blow,  succeeded  in  hamstringing  him  ; 
while  the  gray,  missing  the  support  of  the  master-hand, 
stumbled  and  fell  upon  his  head. 

Horse,  stag,  and  man,  all  rolled  upon  the  ground  within  the 
compass  of  ten  yards — the  terrified  and  wounded  deer  striking 
out  furiously  in  all  directions — so  that  it  seemed  impossible  that 
Archer  could  escape  some  deadly  injury — while,  to  in- 
crease the  fury  and  the  peril  of  the  scene,  the  hounds  came  up, 
and  added  their  fresh  fierceness  to  the  fierce  confusion.  Before, 
however,  A came  up,  Harry  had  gained  his  feet,  drawn  his 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  155 

small  knife — the  larger  having  luckily  flown  many  yards  as  he 
fell — and  running  in  behind  the  struggling  quarry,  had  seized 
the  brow  antler,  and  at  one  strong  and  skilful  blow,  severed 
the  weasand  and  the  jugular.  One  gush  of  dark  red  gore — 
one  plunging  effort,  and  the  superb  and  stately  beast  lay  mo- 
tionless forever — while  the  loud  death  halloo  rang  over  the 
broad  valley — all  fears,  all  perils,  utterly  forgotton  in  the  strong 
rapture  of  that  thrilling  moment. 


SNIPE  ON  THE  UPLAND. 

"  Now  then,  boys,  we've  no  time  to  lose,"  said  Archer,  as  he 
replaced  his  knives,  which  he  had  been  employed  in  wiping  with 
great  care,  in  their  respective  scabbards,  "  it's  getting  toward 
eight  o'clock,  and  I  feel  tolerably  peckish,  the  milk  punch  and 
biscuits  notwithstanding  ;  we  shall  not  be  in  the  field  before  ten 
o'clock,  do  our  best  for  it.  Now,  Jem,"  he  continued,  as  that 
worthy,  followed  by  David  Seers  and  the  Captain  made  their 
appearance,  hot  and  breathless,  but  in  high  spirits  at  the  glori- 
ous termination  of  the  morning's  sport — "  Now,  Jem,  you  and 
the  Captain  must  look  out  a  good  strong  pole,  and  tie  that 
fellow's  legs,  and  carry  him  between  you  as  far  as  Blain's  house 
— you  can  come  up  with  the  wagon  this  afternoon  and  bring 
him  down  to  the  village.  What  the  deuce  are  you  pottering 
at  that  colt  about,  Torn  ?  He's  not  hurt  a  pin's  value,  on  the 
contrary — " 

"  Better  for  't,  I  suppose,  you'll  be  a  tellin'  me  torights  ;  bet- 
ter for  that  all-fired  etarnal  tumble,  aint  he  ?"  responded  the  fat 
chap,  with  a  lamentable  attempt  at  an  ironical  smile,  put  on  to 
hide  his  real  chagrin. 

"  In  course  he  is,"  replied  Frank,  who  had  recovered  his 
wonted  equanimity,  and  who,  having  been  most  unmercifully 
rallied  by  the  whole  party  for  leaving  his  bullets  at  home,  was 
glad  of  an  opportunity  to  carry  the  war  into  the  enemy's  coun- 
try, "  in  course  he  is  a  great  deal  better — if  a  thing  can  be  said 
to  be  better  which,  under  all  circumstances,  is  so  infernally  bad, 
as  that  brute.  I  should  think  he  was  better  for  it.  Why,  by 
the  time  he's  had  half  a  dozen  more  such  purls,  he'll  leap  a 
six  foot  fence  without  shaking  a  loose  rail.  In  fact,  I'll  bet  a 


156  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

dollar  I  carry  him  back  over  that  same  wall  without  touching 
a  stone.'7  And,  as  he  spoke,  he  set  his  foot  into  the  stirrup, 
as  if  he  were  about  to  put  his  threat  into  immediate  execution. 

"  Quit,  Forester — quit,  I  say — quit,  now — consarn  the  hide 
on  you  " — shouted  the  fat  man,  now  in  great  tribulation,  and 
apprehending  a  second  edition  of  the  tumble — "  quit  foolin',  or 
by  h — 1  I'll  put  a  grist  of  shot,  or  one  of  they  green  cartridges 
into  you  stret  away — I  will,  by  the  Etarnal !"  and  as  he  spoke 
he  dropped  the  muzzle  of  his  gun,  and  put  his  thumb  upon 
the  cock. 

"/say  quit  fooling  too,"  cried  Harry,  "both  of  you  quit  it; 
you  old  fool,  Tom,  do  you  really  suppose  he  is  mad  enough  to 
ride  that  brute  of  yours  again  at  the  wall  ?" 

"  Mad  enough  ! — Yes,  I  swon  he  be,"  responded  Tom  ;  "  both 
of  you  be  as  mad  as  the  hull  Asylum  down  to  York.  If  Frank 
arn't  mad,  then  there  aint  such  a  word  as  mad  !"  But  as  he 
spoke  he  replaced  his  gun  under  his  arm,  and  walked  off  to  his 
horse,  which  he  mounted,  without  farther  words,  his  example 
being  followed  by  the  whole  party,  who  set  off  on  the  spur,  and 
reached  the  village  in  less  than  half  an  hour. 

Breakfast  was  on  the  table  when  they  got  there — black  tea, 
produced  from  Harry's  magazine  of  stores,  rich  cream,  hot 
bread,  and  Goshen  butter — eggs  in  abundance,  boiled,  roasted, 
fried  with  ham — an  omelet  au  fines  herbes,  no  inconsiderable 
token  of  Tim's  culinary  skill — a  cold  round  of  spiced  beef,  and 
last,  not  least,  a  dish  of  wood-duck  hot  from  the  gridiron. 

"  By  George,"  said  Harry,  "  here's  a  feast  for  an  epicure,  and 
I  can  find  the  appetite." 

"  Find  it  " — said  Forester,  grinning,  who,  pretending  to  eat 
nothing,  or  next  to  nothing,  and  not  to  care  what  was  set 
before  him,  was  really  the  greatest  gourmet  and  heaviest  feeder 
of  the  party — "  Find  it,  Harry  1  it's  quite  new  to  me  that  you 
ever  lost  it.  When  was  it,  hey  ?" 

"Arter  he'd  eat  a  hull  roast  pig,  I  reckon — leastwise  that 
might  make  Harry  lose  his'n  ;  but  I'll  be  darned  if  two  would 
be  a  sarcumstance  to  set  before  you,  Frank,  no  how.  Here's 
A ,  too,  he  don't  never  eat." 

"  These  wood-duck  are  delicious,"  answered  the  Commodore, 
who  was  very  busily  employed  in  stowing  away  his  pro  van t, 
"  What  a  capital  bird  it  is,  Harry." 

"  Indeed,  is  it,"  said  he,  "  and  this  is,  me  judice,  the  very 
best  way  to  eat  it,  red  hot  from  the  gridiron,  cooked  very  quick, 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  157 

and  brown  on  the  outside,  and  full  of  gravy  when  you  cut ; 
with  a  squeeze  of  a  lemon  and  a  dash  of  cayenne  it  is  sublime* 
What  say  you,  Forester  ?" 

"  Oh,  you  wont  ketch  him  sayin'  nauthen,  leastwise  not  this 
half  hour — but  the  way  he'll  keep  a  feedin'  wont  be  slow,  I 
tell  you — that's  the  way  to  judge  how  Forester  likes  his  grub 
—jest  see  how  he  takes  hold  on  V 

"  Are  there  many  wood-duck  about  this  season,  Tom  ?"  asked 
Forester,  affecting  to  be  .perfectly  careless  and  indifferent  to  all 
that  had  passed.  "  Did  you  kill  these  yourself?" 

"  There  was  a  sight  on  them  a  piece  back,  but  they're  gittin' 
scase — pretty  scase  now,  I  tell  you.  Yes,  I  shot  these  down 
by  Aunt  Sally's  big  spring-hole  a  Friday.  I'd  been  a  lookin' 
round,  you  see,  to  find  where  the  quail  kept  afore  you  came  up 
here — for  I'd  a  been  expectin'  you  a  week  and  better — and  I'd 
got  in  quite  late,  toward  sundown,  with  an  outsidin'  bevy,  down 
by  the  cedar  swamp,  and  druv  them  off  into  the  big  bog 
meadows,  below  Sugar-loaf,  and  I'd  killed  quite  a  bunch  on 
them — sixteen,  I  reckon,  Archer  ;  and  there  wasn't  but  eighteen 
when  I  lit  on  'em — and  it  was  gittin'  pretty  well  dark  when  I 
came  to  the  big  spring,  and  little  Dash  was  worn  dead  out,  and 
1  was  tired,  and  hot,  and  thunderin'  thirsty,  so  I  sets  down 
aside  the  outlet  where  the  spring  water  comes  in  good  and  cool, 
and  I  was  mixin'  up  a  nice  long  drink  in  thejbig  glass  we  hid 
last  slimmer  down  in  the  mudhole,  with  some  great  cider  sper- 
rits — when  what  should  I  hear  all  at  once  but  whistle,  whistlin' 
over  head,  the  wings  of  a  whole  drove  on  'em,  so  up  I  buckled 
the  old  gun ;  but  they'd  plumped  down  into  the  crick  fifteen 
rod  off  or  better,  down  by  the  big  pin  oak,  and  there  they  sot, 
seven  ducks  and  two  big  purple-headed  drakes — beauties,  I  tell 
you.  Well,  boys,  I  upped  gun  and  tuck  sight  stret  away,  but 
just  as  I  was  drawin',  I  kind  o'  thought  I'd  got  two  little  char- 
ges of  number  eight,  and  that  to  shoot  at  ducks  at  fifteen  rod 
wasn't  nauthen.  Well,  then,  I  fell  a  thinkin',  and  then  I 
sairched  my  pockets,  and  arter  a  piece  found  two  green  car- 
tridges of  number  three,  as  Archer  gave  me  in  the  Spring,  so  I 
dravved  out  the  small  shot,  and  inned  with  these,  and  put  fresh 
caps  on  to  be  sarten.  But  jest  when  I'd  got  ready,  the  ducks 
had  floated  down  with  the  stream,  and  dropped  behind  the 
pint — so  I  downed  on  my  knees,  and  crawled,  and  Dash  along 
side  on  me,  for  all  the  world  as  if  the  darned  dog  knowed  ; 
well,  I  crawled  quite  a  piece,  till  I'd  got  under  a  bit  of  alder 


158  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

bush,  and  then  I  seen  them — all  in  a  lump  like,  except  two — ; 
six  ducks  and  a  big  drake — feeding  and  stickin'  down  their 
heads  into  the  weeds,  and  flutterin'  up  their  hinder  eends,  and 
chatterin'  and  jokin' — I  could  have  covered  them  all  with  a 
handkercher,  exeeptin'  two,  as  I  said  afore,  one  duck  and  the 
little  drake,  and  they  was  off  a  rod  or  better  from  the  rest,  at 
the  two  different  sides  of  the  stream — the  big  bunch  warn't 
over  ten  rods  off  me,  nor  so  far  ;  so  T  tuck  sight  right  at  the  big 
drake's  neck.  The  water  was  quite  clear  and  still,  and  seemed 
to  have  caught  all  the  little  light  as  was  left  by  the  sun,  for  the 
skies  had  got  pretty  dark,  I  tell  you ;  and  I  could  see  his  head 
quite  clear  agin  the  water — well,  I  draw'd  trigger,  and  the  hull 
charge  ripped  into  'em — and  there  was  a  scrabblin'  and  a 
squatterin'  in  the  water  now,  I  tell  you — but  not  one  on  'em 
riz — not  the  darned  one  of  the  hull  bunch  ;  but  up  jumped 
both  the  others,  and  I  d rawed  on  the  drake — more  by  the 
whistlin'  of  his  wings,  than  that  I  seen  him — but  I  drawed 
stret,  Archer,  any  ways  ;  and  arter  I'd  pulled  half  a  moment  I 
hard  him  plump  down  into  the  creek  with  a  splash,  and  the 
water  sparkled  up  like  a  fountain  where  he  fell.  So  then  I 
didn't  wait  to  load,  but  ran  along  the  bank  as  hard  as  I  could 
strick  it,  and  when  I'd  got  down  to  the  spot,  I  tell  you,  little 
Dash  had  got  two  on  'em  out  afore  I  carne,  and  was  in  with  a 
third.  Well,  sich,  a  cuttin'  and  a  splashin'  as  there  was  you 
niver  did  see,  none  on  you — I  guess,  for  sartin — leastwise  I 
niver  did.  I'd  killed,  you  see,  the  drake  and  two  ducks,  dead 
at  the  first  fire,  but  three  was  only  wounded,  wing-tipped,  and 
leg-broken,  and  I  can't  tell  you  what  all.  It  was  all  of  nine 
o'clock  at  night,  and  dark  as  all  out  doors,  afore  I  gathered 
them  three  ducks,  but  I  did  gather  'em  ;  Lord,  boys,  why  I'd 
stayed  till  mornin,  but  I'd  a  got  them,  sarten.  Well,  the  drake 
I  killed  flyin'  I  couldn't  find  him  that  night,  no  how,  for  the 
stream  swept  him  down,  and  I  hadn't  got  no  guide  to  go  by, 
so  I  let  him  go  then,  but  I  was  up  next  mornin'  bright  and 
airly,  and  started  up  the  stream  clean  from  the  bridge  here,  up 
through  Garry's  backside,  and  my  boghole,  and  so  on  along  the 
meadows  to  Aunt  Sally's  run — and  looked  in  every  willow  bush 
that  dammed  the  waters  back,  like,  and  every  bunch  of  weeds, 
and  brier-brake,  all  the  way,  and  sure  enough  I  found  him,  he'd 
been  killed  dead,  and  floated  down  the  crick,  and  then  the 
stream  had  washed  him  up  into  a  heap  of  broken  sticks  and 
briers,  and  when  the  waters  fell,  for  there  had  been  a  little 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  150 

freshet,  they  left  him  there  breast  uppermost — and  I  was  glad 
to  find  him — for  I  think,  Archer,  as  that  shot  was  the  nicest, 
prettiest,  etarnal,  darndest,  long,  good  shot,  I  iver  did  make, 
anyhow  ;  and  it  was  so  dark  I  couldn't  see  him." 

"  A  sweet  shot,  Tom,"  responded  Forester,  "  a  sweet  pretty 
shot,  if  there  had  only  been  one  word  of  truth  in  it,  which  there 
is  not — don't  answer  me,  you  old  thief — shut  up  instantly,  and 
get  your  traps ;  for  we've  done  feeding,  and  you've  done  lying, 
for  the  present,  at  least  I  hope  so — and  now  we'll  out,  and  see 
whether  you've  poached  up  all  the  game  in  the  country." 

"  Well,  it  be  gettin'  late  for  sartain,"  answered  Tom,  "  and 
that'll  save  your  little  wax  skin  for  the  time  ;  but  see,  jest  see, 
boy,  if  I  doesn't  sarve  you  out,  now,  afore  sundown  !" 

"  Which  way  shall  we  beat,  Tom,"  asked  Harry,  as  he  changed 
his  riding  boots  for  heavy  shooting  shoes  and  leggins  ;  "  which 
course  to-day  ?" 

"  Why,  Timothy's  gittin'  out  the  wagon,  and  we'll  drive  up 
the  old  road  round  the  ridge,  and  so  strike  in  by  Minthorne's, 
and  take  them  ridges  down,  and  so  across  the  hill — there's  some 
big  stubbles  there,  and  nice  thick  brush  holes  along  the  fence 
sides,  and  the  boys  does  tell  us  there  be  one  or  two  big  bevies 
— but,  cuss  them,  they  will  lie  ! — and  over  back  of  Gin'ral  Ber- 
tolf 's  barns,  and  so  acrost  the  road,  and  round  the  upper  eend  of 
the  big  pond,  and  down  the  long  swamp  into  Hell  hole,  and 
Tim  can  meet  us  with  the  wagon  at  five  o'clock,  under  Bill  Wis- 
ner's  white  oak — does  that  suit  you  ?" 

"  Excellently  well,  Tom,"  replied  Harry,  "  I  could  not  have 
cut  a  better  day's  work  out  myself,  if  I  had  tried.  Well,  all  the 
traps  are  in,  and  the  dogs,  Timothy,  is  it  not  so  ?" 

"  Ey  !  ey  !  Sur,"  shouted  that  worthy  from  without,  "  all  in, 
this  half-hour,  and  all  roight !" 

"  Light  your  cigars  then,  quick,  and  let  us  start — hurrah !" 

Within  two  minutes,  they  were  all  seated,  Fat  Tom  in  the 
post  of  honor  by  Harry's  side  upon  the  driving  box,  the  Com- 
modore and  Frank,  with  Timothy,  on  the  back  seat,  and  off  they 
rattled — ten  miles  an  hour  without  the  whip,  up  hill  and  down 
dale  all  alike,  for  they  had  but  three  miles  to  go,  and  that  was 
gone  in  double  quick  time. 

"  What  mun  Ay  do  wi'  t'  horses,  Sur  ?"  asked  Tim,  touching 
his  castor  as  he  spoke. 

"  Take  them  home,  to  be  sure,"  replied  Harry,  "  and  meet  us 


160  WARWICK  WOODLANDS. 

with  them  under  the  oak  tree,  close  to  Mr.  Wisner's  house,  at 
five  o'clock  this  evening." 

"  Nay  !  nay  !  Sur !"  answered  Tim,  with  a  broad  grin,  eager 
to  see  the  sport,  and  hating  to  be  sent  so  unceremoniously  home, 
"  that  winna  do,  I'm  thinking — who'll  hug  t'  gam  bag,  and  carry 
t'  bottles,  and  make  t'  loonchun  ready  ;  that  winna  do,  Sur, 
niver.  If  you  pie-ease,  Sur,  Ay'll  pit  oop  t'  horses  i'  Measter 
Minthorne's  barn  here,  and  shak'  doon  a  bite  o'  hay  tull  'em,  and 
so  gang  on  wi'  you,  and  carry  t'  bag  whaile  four  o'  t'  clock,  and 
then  awa  back  and  hitch  oop,  and  draive  doon  to  t'  aik  tree !" 

"  I  understand,  Tim,"  said  his  master,  laughing  ;  "  I  under- 
stand right  well  1  you  want  to  see  the  sport." 

"  Ayse  oophaud  it !"  grinned  Timothy,  seeing  at  once  that  he 
should  gain  his  point. 

"  Well !  well !  I  don't  care  about  it ;  will  Minthorne  let  us  put 
up  the  beasts  in  his  barn,  Tom  ?" 

"  Let  us  !  let  us  1"  exclaimed  the  fat  man  ;  "  by  gad  I'd  like 
to  see  Joe  Minthorne,  or  any  other  of  his  breed,  a  tellin'  me  I 
should'nt  put  my  cattle  where  I  pleased  ;  jest  let  me  ketch  him 
at  it !" 

"  Very  well ;  have  it  your  own  way,  Tim,  take  care  of 
the  beasts,  and  overtake  us  as  quick  as  you  can  !"  and  as  he 
spoke,  he  let  down  the  bars  which  parted  a  fine  wheat  stubble 
from  the  road,  and  entered  the  field  with  the  dogs  at  heel.  "  We 
must  part  company  to  beat  these  little  woods,  must  we  not, 
Tom  ?" 

"  I  guess  so — I'll  go  on  with  A ;  his  Grouse  and  my 

Dash  will  work  well  enough,  and  you  and  Frank  keep  down  the 
valley  hereaways  ;  we'll  beat  that  little  swamp-hole,  and  then 
the  open  woods  to  the  brook  side,  and  so  along  the  meadows  to 
the  big  bottom  ;  you  keep  the  hill-side  coverts,  and  look  the 
little  pond-holes  well  on  Minthorne's  Ridge,  you'll  find  a  cock  or 
two  there  anyhow  ;  and  beat  the  bushes  by  the  wall  ;  I  guess 
you'll  have  a  bevy  jumpin'  up  ;  and  try,  boys,  do,  to  git  'em 
down  the  hill  into  the  boggy  bottom,  for  we  can  use  them,  I  tell 
you  !"  arid  so  they  parted. 

Archer  and  Forester,  with  Shot  and  Chase  at  heel,  entered 
the  little  thicket  indicated,  and  beat  it  carefully,  but  blank  ; 
although  the  dogs  worked  hard,  and  seemed  as  if  about  to  make 
game  more  than  once.  They  crossed  the  road,  and  came  into 
another  little  wood,  thicker  and  wetter  than  the  first,  with 
several  springy  pools,  although  it  was  almost  upon  the  summit 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  161 

of  the  hill.  Here  Harry  took  the  left  or  lower  hand,  bidding 
Frank  keep  near  the  outside  at  top,  and  full  ten  yards  ahead 
of  him. 

"  And  mind,  if  you  hear  Tom  shoot,  or  cry  mark?  jump  over 
into  the  open  field,  and  be  all  eyes,  for  that's  their  line  of  country 
into  the  swamp,  where  we  would  have  them.  Hold  up,  good 
dogs,  hold  up  !" 

And  off  they  went,  crashing  and  rattling  through  the  dry 
matted  briers,  crossing  each  other  evenly,  and  quartering  the 
ground  with  rare  accuracy.  Scarcely,  however,  had  they  beat 
ten  paces,  before  Shot  flushed  a  cock  as  he  was  in  the  very  act 
of  turning  at  the  end  of  his  beat,  having  run  in  on  him  down 
wind,  without  crossing  the  line  of  scent.  Flip — flip — flap  rose 
the  bird,  but  as  the  dog  had  turned,  and  was  now  running  from 
him,  he  perceived  no  cause  for  alarm,  fluttered  a  yard  or  two 
onward,  and  alighted.  The  dog,  who  had  neither  scented  nor 
seen  the  bird,  caught  the  sound  of  his  wing,  and  stood  stiff  on 
the  instant,  though  his  stern  was  waved  doubtfully,  and  though 
he  turned  his  sagacious  knowing  phiz  over  his  shoulder,  as  if  to 
look  out  for  the  pinion,  the  flap  of  which  had  arrested  his  quick 
ear.  The  bird  had  settled  ere  he  turned,  but  Shot's  eye  fell 
upon  his  master,  as  with  his  finger  on  the  trigger-guard,  and 
thumb  on  the  hammer,  he  was  stepping  softly  up  in  a  direct 
line,  with  eye  intently  fixed,  toward  the  place  where  the 
woodcock  had  dropped ;  he  knew  as  well  as  though  he  had 
been  blessed  with  human  intellect,  that  game  was  in  the  wind, 
and  remained  still  and  steady.  Flip — flap  again  up  jumped  the 
bird. 

"  Mark  cock,"  cried  Forester,  from  the  other  side  of  the  wood, 
not  having  seen  any  thing,  but  hearing  the  sound  of  the  timber 
doodle's  wing  somewhere  or  other ;  and  at  the  self-same  moment 
bang !  boomed  the  full  report  of  Harry's  right  hand  barrel,  the 
feathers  drifting  off  down  wind  toward  Frank,  told  him  the  work 
was  done,  and  he  asked  no  question  ;  but  ere  the  cock  had  struck 
the  ground,  which  he  did  within  half  a  second,  completely 
doubled  up — whirr,  whirr-r-r !  the  loud  and  startling  hubbub  of 
ruffed  grouse  taking  wing  at  the  report  of  Harry's  gun,  suc- 
ceeded— and  instantly,  before  that  worthy  had  got  his  eye  about 
from  marking  the  killed  woodcock,  bang !  bang  !  from  Forester. 
Archer  dropped  butt,  and  loaded  as  fast  as  it  was  possible,  and 
bagged  his  dead  bird  quietly,  but  scarcely  had  he  done  so  before 
Frank  hailed  him. 


162  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

"  Bring  up  the  dogs,  old  fellow  ;  I  knocked  down  two,  and 
I've  bagged  one,  but  I'm  afraid  the  other's  run !" 

"  Stand  still,  then — stand  still,  till  I  join  you.  He-here,  he- 
here  good  dogs,''  cried  Harry,  striding  away  through  the  brush 
like  a  good  one. 

In  a  moment  he  stood  by  Frank,  who  was  just  pocketing  his 
first,  a  fine  hen  grouse. 

"  The  other  was  the  cock,"  said  Frank,  "  and  a  very  large  one, 
too  ;  he  was  a  long  shot,  but  he's  very  hard  hit ;  he  flew  against 
this  tree  before  he  fell,  and  bounded  off  it  here  ;  look  at  the 
feathers  !" 

"  Ay  !  we'll  have  him  in  a  moment ;  seek  dead,  Shot ;  seek, 
good  dogs  ;  ha  !  now  they  wind  him  ;  there  !  Chase  has  him — 
no  !  he  draws  again — now  Shot  is  standing  ;  hold  up,  hold  up, 
lads,  he's  running  like  the  mischief,  and  won't  stop  till  he  reaches 
some  thick  covert.'' 

Bang  !  bang  !  "  Mark — ma-ark  !''  bang  !  bang  !  "  mark,  Harry 
Archer,  mark,"  came  down  the  wind  in  quick  succession  from 
the  other  party,  who  were  beating  some  thick  briers  by  the  brook 
side,  at  three  or  four  fields'  distance. 

u  Quick,  Forester,  quick  !"  shouted  Archer ;  "  over  the  wall, 
lad,  and  mark  them  !  those  are  quail ;  I'm  man  enough  to  get 
this  fellow  by  myself.  Steady,  lads  !  steady-y-y  !"  as  they  were 
roading  on  at  the  top  of  their  pace.  "  Toho  !  toho-o-o,  Chase  ; 
fie,  for  shame — don't  you  see,  sir,  Shot's  got  him  dead  there 
under  his  very  nose  in  those  cat-briers.  Ha  !  dead  !  good  lads — 
good  lads ;  dead  !  dead !  fetch  him,  good  dog;  by  George  but 
he  is  a  fine  bird.  I've  got  him,  Forester ;  have  you  marked 
down  the  quail  ?'' 

"  Ay  !  ay  !  in  the  bog  bottom  !" 

"  How  many  ?" 

"Twenty-three  !" 

"  Then  we'll  have  sport,  by  Jove  !"  and,  as  he  spoke,  they  en- 
tered a  wide  rushy  pasture,  across  which,  at  some  two  or  three 

hundred  yards,  A and  fat  Tom  were  seen  advancing  toward 

them.  They  had  not  made  three  steps  before  both  dogs  stood 
stiff  as  stones  in  the  short  grass,  where  there  was  not  a  particle 
of  covert. 

"  Why,  what  the  deuce  is  this,  Harry  ?" 

"  Devil  a  know  know  I,"  responded  he  ;  "  but  step  up  to  the 
red  dog,  Frank — I'll  go  to  the  other — they've  got  game,  and  no 
mistake !" 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  163 

"  Skeap — ske-eap  !"  up  sprang  a  couple  of  English  snipe  before 
Shot's  nose,  and  Harry  cut  them  down,  a  splendid  double  shot, 
before  they  had  flown  twenty  yards,  just  as  Frank  dropped  the 
one  which  rose  to  him  at  the  same  moment.  At  the  sound  of  the 
guns  a  dozen  more  rose  hard  by,  and  fluttering  on  in  rapid  zig- 
zags, dropped  once  again  within  a  hundred  yards — the  meadow 
was  alive  with  them. 

"  Did  you  ever  see  snipe  here  before,  Tom  ?"  asked  Harry,  as 
he  loaded. 

"  Never  in  all  my  life — but  it's  full  now — load  up  !  load  up  ! 
for  heaven's  sake !" 

"  No  hurry,  Tom !  Tom — steady!  the  birds  are  tame  and 
lie  like  stones.  We  can  get  thirty  or  forty  here,  I  know,  if  you'll 
be  steady  only — but  if  we  go  in  with  these  four  dogs,  we  shall 
lose  all.  Here  comes  Tirn  with  the  couples,  and  we'll  take  up 
all  but  two  !" 

"  That's  right,"  said  A ;  "  take  up  Grouse  and  Tom's  dog, 

for  they  won't  hunt  with  yours — and  yours  are  the  steadiest,  and 
fetch — that's  it,  Tim,  couple  them,  and  carry  them  away.  What 
have  you  killed,  Archer  ?"  he  added,  while  his  injunctions  were 
complied  with. 

"  One  woodcock  and  a  brace  of  ruffed  grouse  !  and  Frank  has 
marked  down  three-and-twenty  quail  into  that  rushy  bottom 
yonder,  where  we  can  get  every  bird  of  them.  We  are  going 
to  have  great  sport  to-day  !" 

"  I  think  so.  Tom  and  I  each  killed  a  double  shot  out  of  that 
bevy  !" 

"  That  was  well  !  Now,  then,  walk  slowly  and  far  apart — we 
must  beat  this  three  or  four  times,  at  least — the  dogs  will  get 
them  up!" 

It  was  not  a  moment  before  the  first  bird  rose,  but  it  was  quite 
two  hours,  and  all  the  dinner  horns  had  long  blown  for  noon, 
before  the  last  was  bagged — the  four  guns  having  scored,  in  that 
one  meadow,  forty-nine  English  snipe — fifteen  for  Harry  Archer 
— thirteen  for  Tom  Draw — twelve  for  the  Commodore,  and  only 
nine  for  Forester,  who  never  killed  snipe  quite  so  well  as  he  did 
cock  or  quail. 

"And  now,  boys,"  exclaimed  Tom,  as  he  flung  his  huge  car- 
case on  the  ground,  with  a  thud  that  shook  it  many  a  rod  around 
— "  there's  a  cold  roast  fowl,  and  some  nice  salt  pork  and  crack- 
ers, in  that  'ar  game  bag — and  I'm  a  whale  now,  I  tell  you,  for 
a  drink  I'7 


164  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

"Which  will  you  take  to  drink,  Tom?"  inquired  Forester, 
very  gravely — "  fowl,  pork,  or  crackers  ?  Here  they  are,  all  of 
them!  I  prefer  whiskey  and  water,  myself!"  qualifying,  as  he 
spoke,  a  moderate  cup  with  some  of  the  ice-cold  water  which 
welled  out  in  a  crystal  stream  from  a  small  basin  under  the 
wreathed  roots  of  the  sycamore  which  overshadowed  them. 

"  None  of  your  nonsense,  Forester — hand  us  the  liquor,  lad 
—I'm  dry,  I  tell  you !" 

"  I  wish  you'd  tell  me  something  I  don't  know,  then,  if  you 
feel  communicative  ;  for  I  know  that  you're  dry — now  and  al- 
ways !  Well !  don't  be  mad,  old  fellow,  here's  the  bottle — 
don't  empty  it— that's  all !" 

"  Well !  now  I've  drinked,"  said  Tom,  after  a  vast  potation, 
"  now  I've  drinked  good — we'll  have  a  bite  and  rest  awhile, 
and  smoke  a  pipe ;  and  then  we'll  use  them  quail,  and  we'll 
have  time  to  pick  up  twenty  cock  in  Hell-hole  arterwards,  and 
that  won't  be  a  slow  day's  work,  I  reckon." 


THE  QUAIL. 

"CERTAINLY  this,  is  a  very  lovely  country,"  exclaimed  the 
Commodore  suddenly,  as  he  gazed  with  a  quiet  eye,  puffing  his 
cigar  the  while,  over  the  beautiful  vale,  with  the  clear  expanse 
of  Wickham's  Pond  in  the  middle  foreground,  and  the  wild 
hoary  mountains  framing  the  rich  landscape  in  the  distance. 

"  Truly,  you  may  say  that,"  replied  Harry  ;  "  I  have  travelled 
over  a  large  part  of  the  world,  and  for  its  own  peculiar  style  of 
loveliness,  I  must  say  that  I  never  have  seen  any  thing  to  match 
with  the  vale  of  Warwick.  I  would  give  much,  very  much,  to 
own  a  few  acres,  and  a  snug  cottage  here,  in  which  I  might 
pass  the  rest  of  my  days,  far  aloof  from  the 

Fumum  et  opes  strepitumque  Romae." 

"  Then,  why  the  h — 1  don't  you  own  a  few  acres  ?"  put  in  an- 
cient Tom  ;  "  I'd  be  right  glad  to  know,  and  gladder  yit  to  have 
you  up  here,  Archer." 

"  I  would  indeed,  Tom,"  answered  Harry  ;  "  I'm  not  joking  at 
all ;  but  there  are  never  any  small  places  to  be  bought  here- 
about ;  and,  as  for  large  ones,  your  land  is  so  confounded  good, 
that  a  fellow  must  be  a  nabob  to  think  of  buying." 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  165 

"  Well,  how  would  Jem  Burt's  place  suit  you,  Archer  ?"  ask- 
ed the  fat  man.  "  You  knows  it — jist  a  mile  and  a  half  'tother 
side  Warwick,  by  the  crick  side  ?  I  guess  it  will  have  to  be 
sold  anyhow  next  April ;  leastways  the  old  man's  dead,  and  the 
heirs  want  the  estate  settled  up  like." 

"  Suit  me  !"  cried  Harry,  "  by  George !  it's  just  the  thing,  if 
I  recollect  it  rightly.  But  how  much  land  is  there?" 

"  Twenty  acres,  I  guess — not  over  twenty-five,  no  how.'* 

"  And  the  house  V 

"  Well,  that  wants  fixin'  some ;  and  the  bridge  over  the 
crick's  putty  bad,  too,  it  will  want  putty  nigh  a  new  one.  Why, 
the  house  is  a  story  and  a  half  like  ;  and  it's  jist  an  entry  stret 
through  the  middle,  and  a  parlor  on  one  side  on't,  and  a  kitchen 
on  the  t'other ;  and  a  chamber  behind  both  on  'em." 

"  What  can  it  be  bought  for,  Tom  ?" 

"  I  guess  three  thousand  dollars  ;  twenty-five  hundred,  may- 
be. It  will  go  cheap,  I  reckon ;  I  don't  hear  tell  o'  no  one  look- 
in'  at  it." 

"  What  will  it  cost  me  more  to  fix  it,  think  you  ?" 

"  Well,  you  see,  Archer,  the  land's  ben  most  darned  badly 
done  by,  this  last  three  years,  since  old  'squire's  ben  so  low ; 
and  the  bridge,  that'll  take  a  smart  sum  ;  and  the  fences  is 
putty  much  gone  to  rack ;  I  guess  it'll  take  hard  on  to  a  thou- 
sand more  to  fix  it  up  right,  like  you'd  like  to  have  it,  without 
doin'  nothin'  at  the  house." 

"  And  fifteen  hundred  more  for  that  and  the  stables.  I  wish 
to  heaven  I  had  known  this  yesterday  ;  or  rather  before  I  came 
up  hither,"  said  Harry. 

"  Why  so  ?"  asked  the  Commodore. 

"  Why,  as  the  deuce  would  have  it,  I  told  my  broker  to  invest 
six  thousand,  that  I  have  got  loose,  in  a  good  mortgage,  if  he 
could  find  one,  for  five  years  ;  and  I  have  got  no  stocks  that  I 
can  sell  out ;  all  that  I  have  but  this,  is  on  good  bond  and 
mortgage,  in  Boston,  and  little  enough  of  it,  too." 

"  Well,  if  that's  all,"  said  Forester,  "  we  can  run  down  to- 
morrow, and  you  will  be  in  time  to  stop  him." 

"  That's  true,  too,"  answered  Harry,  pondering.  "  Are  you 
sure  it  can  be  bought,  Tom  ?" 

"  I  guess  so,"  was  the  response.  ' 

"  That  means,  I  suppose,  that  you're  perfectly  certain  of  it. 
Why  the  devil  can't  you  speak  English  ?" 

"  English  !"  exclaimed  Frank  ;  u  Good  Lord  !  why  don't  you 


168  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

ask  him  why  he  can't  speak  Greek?  English!  Lord!  Lord! 
Lord  !  Tom  Draw  and  English  !" 

"  I'll  jist  tell  Archer  what  he  warnts  to  know,  and  then  see 
you,  my  clear  little,  critter,  if  I  doosn't  English  you  some !"  re- 
plied the  old  man,  waxing  wroth.  "Well,  Archer,  to  tell  hea- 
ven's truth,  now,  I  doos  know  it ;  but  it's  an  etarnal  all-fired 
shame  of  me  to  be  tellin'  it,  bein'  as  how  I  knows  it  in  the  way 
of  business  like.  It's  got  to  be  selled  by  vandoo*  in  April. 

"  Then,  by  Jove  !  I  will  buy  it,"  said  Harry  ;  "  and  down  I'll 
go  to-morrow.  But  that  need  not  take  you  away,  boys  ;  you 
can  stay  and  finish  out  the  week  here,  and  go  home  in  the 
lanthe  ;  Tom  will  send  you  down  to  Nyack." 

"  Sartain,"  responded  Tom ;  "  but  now  I'm  most  darned 
glad  I  told  you  that,  Archer.  I  meant  to  a  told  you  on't  afore, 
but  it  clean  slipped  out  of  my  head ;  but  all's  right,  now.  Hark ! 
hark !  don't  you  hear,  boys  ?  The  quails  hasn't  all  got  to- 
gether yit — better  luck  !  Hush,  A ,  and  you'll  hear  them 

callin' — whew-wheet !  whew-wheet !  whe-vvhe-whe ;"  and  the 
old  Turk  began  to  call  most  scientifically  ;  and  in  ten  minutes 
the  birds  were  answering  him  from  all  quarters,  through  the 
circular  space  of  Bog-meadow,  and  through  the  thorny  brake 
beyond  it,  and  some  from  a  large  ragwort  field  further  yet. 

u  How  is  this,  Frank — did  they  scatter  so  much  when  they 
dropped  ?"  asked  Harry. 

"  Yes ;  part  of  them  'lighted  in  the  little  bank  on  this  edge, 
by  the  spring,  you  know;  and  some,  a  dozen  or  so,  right  in  the 
middle  of  the  bog,  by  the  single  hickory ;  and  five  or  six  went 
into  the  swamp,  and  a  few  over  it." 

"  That's  it !  that's  it !  and  they've  been  running  to  try  to  get 
together,"  said  the  Commodore. 

"  But  was  too  skeart  to  call,  till  we'd  quit  shootin' !"  said 
Tom.  "  But  come,  boys,  let's  be  stirrin',  else  they'll  git  to- 
gether like ;  they  keeps  drawin',  drawin',  into  one  place  now,  I 
can  hear." 

No  sooner  said  than  done  ;  we  were  all  on  foot  in  an  instant, 
and  ten  minutes  brought  us  to  the  edge  of  the  first  thicket ;  and 
here  was  the  truth  of  Harry's  precepts  tested  by  practice  in  a 
moment;  for  they  had  not  yet  entered  the  thin  bushes,  on 

*  Vendue.  Why  the  French  word  for  a  public  auction  has  been  adopt- 
ed throughout  the  Northern  and  Eastern  States,  as  applied  to  a  Sheriff's 
sale,  deponent  saith  not. 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  167 

•which  now  the  red  leaves  hung  few  and  sere,  before  old  Shot 
threw  his  nose  high  into  the  air,  straightened  his  neck  and  his 
stern,  and  struck  out  at  a  high  trot ;  the  other  setter  evidently 
knowing  what  he  meant,  though  as  yet  he  had  not  caught  the 
wind  of  them.  In  a  moment  they  both  stood  steady  ;  and,  al- 
most at  the  same  instant,  Tom  Draw's  Dash,  and  A "s 

Grouse  came  to  the  point,  all  on  different  birds,  in  a  bit  of  very 
open  ground,  covered  with  wintergreen  about  knee  deep,  and 
interspersed  with  only  a  few  scattered  bushes. 

Whir-r-r-r — up  they  got  all  at  once  !  what  a  jostle — what  a 
hubbub !  Bang !  bang  !  crack  !  bang !  crack  !  bang !  Four  bar- 
rels exploded  in  an  instant,  almost  simultaneously ;  and  two 
sharp  unmeaning  cracks  announced  that,  by  some  means  or 
other,  Frank  Forester's  gun  had  missed  fire  with  both  barrels. 

"  What  the  deuce  is  the  matter,  boys !"  cried  Harry,  laugh- 
ing, as  he  threw  up  his  gun,  after  the  hubbub  had  subsided,  and 
dropped  two  birds — the  only  two  that  fell,  for  all  that  waste  of 
shot  and  powder. 

"  What  the  deuce  ails  you  ?"  he  repeated,  no  one  replying, 
and  all  hands  looking  bashful  and  crest-fallen.  "  Are  you  all 
drunk  ?  or  what  is  the  matter  ?  I  ask  merely  for  information." 

"  Upon  my  life  !  I  believe  /  am!"  said  Frank  Forester.  "  For 
I  have  not  loaded  my  gun  at  all,  since  I  killed  those  two  last 
snipe.  And,  when  we  got  up  from  luncheon,  I  put  on  the  caps 
just  as  if  all  was  right — but  all  is  right  now,"  he  added,  for  he 

had  repaired  his  fault,  and  loaded,  before  A or  fat  Tom  had 

done  staring,  each  in  the  other's  face,  in  blank  astonishment. 

"  Step  up  to  Grouse,  then,"  said  Archer,  who  had  never  taken 
his  eye  off  the  old  brown  pointer,  while  he  was  loading  as  fast 
as  he  could.  "  He  has  got  a  bird,  close  under  his  nose ;  and  it 
will  get  up,  and  steal  away  directly.  That's  a  trick  they  will 
play  very  often." 

"  He  haint  got  no  bird,"  said  Tom,  sulkily.  And  Frank 
paused  doubtful. 

"  Step  up,  I  tell  you,  Frank,"  said  Harry,  "  the  old  Turk's 
savage ;  that's  all." 

And  Frank  did  step  up,  close  to  the  dog's  nose  ;  and  sent 
his  foot  through  the  grass  close  under  it.  Still  the  dog  stood 
perfectly  stiff;  but  no  bird  rose. 

"  I  telled  you  there  warn't  no  quails  there  ;"  growled  Tom. 

"And  I  tell  you  there  are  !"  answered  Archer,  more  sharply 


168  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

than  he  often  spoke  to  his  old  ally ;  for,  in  truth,  he  was  annoy- 
ed at  his  obstinate  pertinacity. 

"  What  do  you  say,  Commodore  ?  Is  Grouse  lying !  Kick 
that  tussock — kick  it  hard,  Frank." 

"  Not  he/'  replied  A- ;  "  I'll  bet  fifty  to  one,  there's  a 

bird  there." 

"  It's  devilish  odd,  then,  that  he  won't  get  up !"  said  Frank. 

Whack !  whack !  and  he  gave  the  hard  tussock  two  kicks 
with  his  heavy  boot,  that  fairly  made  it  shake.  Nothing  stirred. 
Grouse  still  kept  his  point,  but  seemed  half  inclined  to  dash  in. 
Whack!  a  third  kick  that  absolutely  loosened  the  tough  has- 
sock from  the  ground,  and  then,  whirr-r,  from  within  six  inches 
of  the  spot  where  all  three  blows  had  been  delivered,  up  got  the 
bird,  in  a  desperate  hurry ;  and  in  quite  as  desperate  a  hurry 
Forester  covered  it— covered  it  before  it  was  six  yards  off!  His 
finger  was  on  the  trigger,  when  Harry  quietly  said,  "  Steady, 
Frank !"  and  the  word  acted  like  magic" 

He  took  the  gun  quite  down  from  his  shoulder,  nodded  to 
his  friend,  brought  it  up  again,  and  turned  the  bird  over  very 
handsomely,  at  twenty  yards,  or  a  little  further. 

"  Beautifully  done,  indeed,  Frank/'  said  Harry.  "  So  much 
for  coolness !" 

"  What  do  you  say  to  that,  Tom  ?"  said  the  Commodore, 
laughing. 

But  there  was  no  laugh  in  Tom ;  he  only  muttered  a  savage 
growl,  and  an  awful  imprecation ;  and  Harry's  quick  glance 
warned  A not  to  plague  the  old  Trojan  further. 

All  this  passed  in  a  moment ;  and  then  was  seen  one  of  those 
singular  things  that  will  at  times  happen ;  but  with  regard  to 
quail  only,  so  far  as  I  have  ever  seen  or  heard  tell.  For  as 
Forester  was  putting  down  the  card  upon  the  powder  in  the 
barrel  which  he  had  just  fired,  a  second  bird  rose,  almost  from 
the  identical  spot  whence  the  first  had  been  so  difficultly  flushed, 
and  went  off  in  the  same  direction.  But  not  in  the  least  was 
Frank  flurried  now.  He  dropped  his  ramrod  quietly  upon  the 
grass,  brought  up  his  piece  deliberately  to  his  eye,  and  killed 
his  bird  again. 

"  Excellent — excellent !  Frank,"  said  Harry  again.  "  I  never 
saw  two  prettier  shots  in  all  my  life.  Nor  did  I  ever  see  birds 
lie  harder." 

During  all  this  time,  amidst  all  the  kicking  of  tussocks, 
threshing  of  bog-grass,  and  banging  of  guns,  and,  worst  of  all, 


\  V  -V 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  160 

bouncing  up  of  fresh  birds,  from  the  instant  when  they  dropped 
at  the  first  shot,  neither  one  of  Harry's  dogs,  nor  Tom's  little 
Dash,  had  budged  from  their  down  charge.  Now,  however, 
they  got  up  quickly,  and  soon  retrieved  all  the  dead  birds. 

"  Now,  then,  we  will  divide  into  two  parties,"  said  Harry. 
41  Frank,  you  go  with  Tom ;  and  you  corne  with  me,  Commo- 
dore. It  will  never  do  to  have  you  two  jealous  fellows  togeth- 
er, you  wont  kill  a  bird  all  day,"  he  added,  in  a  lower  voice, 
"  That  is  the  worst  of  old  Tom,  when  he  gets  jealous  he's  the 
very  devil,  Frank  is  the  only  fellow  that  can  get  along  with 
him  at  all.  He  puts  me  out  of  temper,  and  if  we  both  got  an- 
gry, it  would  be  very  disagreeable.  For,  though  he  is  the  very 
best  fellow  in  the  world,  when  he  is  in  a  rage  he  is  untameable. 
I  cannot  think  what  has  put  him  out,  now ;  for  he  has  shot 
very  well  to-day.  It  is  only  when  he  gets  behindhand,  that  he 
is  usually  jealous  in  his  shooting ;  but  he  has  got  the  deuce 
into  him  now.'' 

By  this  time  the  two  parties  were  perhaps  forty  yards  apart, 
when  Dash  came  to  a  point  again.  Up  got  a  single  bird,  the 
old  cock,  and  flew  directly  away  from  Tom,  across  Frank's  face ; 
but  not  for  that  did  the  old  chap  pause.  Up  went  his  cannon 
to  his  shoulder,  there  was  a  flash  and  a  roar,  and  the  quail, 
which  was  literally  not  twelve  feet  from  him,  disappeared  as  if 
it  had  been  resolved  into  thin  air.  The  whole  of  Tom's  con- 
centrated charge  had  struck  the  bird  endwise,  as  it  flew  from 
him  ;  and,  except  the  extreme  tips  of  his  wings  and  one  foot,  no 
.part  of  him  could  be  found. 

"  The  devil !"  cried  Harry,  "  that  is  too  bad  I"      . 

"Never  mind,"  said  the  Commodore,  "Frank  will  manage 
him.'1 

As  he  spoke  a  second  bird  got  up,  and  crossed  Forester  in 
the  same  manner,  Draw  doing  precisely  as  he  had  done  before ; 
but,  this  time,  missing  the  quail  clear,  which  Forester  turned 
over. 

"  Load  quick  !  .and  step  up  to  that  fellow.  He  will  run,  I 
think !"  said  Archer. 

"  Ay !  ay  I11  responded  Frank,  and,  having  rammed  down  his 
charge  like  lightning,  moved  forward,  before  he  had  put  the  cap 
on  the  barrel  he  had  fired. 

Just  as  he  took  the  cap  out  of  his  pocket  between  his  finger 
and  thumb,  a  second  quail  rose.  As  cool  and  self-possessed  as 
it  is  possible  to  conceive,  Frank  cocked  the  left  hand  barrel  with 


170  WARWICK   WOODLANDS. 

his  little  finger,  still  holding  the  cap  between  his  forefinger  and 
thumb,  and  actually  contrived  to  bring  up  the  gun,  some  how 
or  other,*  and  to  kill  the  bird,  pulling  the  trigger  with  his 
middle  finger. 

At  the  report  a  third  quail  sprang,  close  under  his  feet ;  and, 
still  unshaken,  he  capped  the  right  hand  barrel,  fired,  and  the 
bird  towered ! 

"  Mark  !  mark  !  Tom — ma-ark  Timothy  P'  shouted  Harry  and 
A in  a  breath. 

"  That  bird  is  as  dead  as  Hannibal  now !"  added  Archer,  as, 
having  spun  up  three  hundred  feet  into  the  air,  and  flown  twice 
as  many  hundred  yards,  it  turned  over,  and  fell  plumb,  like  a 
stone,  through  the  clear  atmosphere. 

"  Ayse  gotten  that  chap  marked  doon  roight,  ayse  warrant 
un !"  shouted  Timothy  from  the  hill  side,  where  with  some 
trouble,  he  was  holding  in  the  obstreperous  spaniels.  "  He's 
doon  in  a  roight  laine  atwixt  't  muckle  gray  stean  and  yon 
hoigh  ashen  tree.' 

"  Did  you  ever  see  such  admirable  shooting,  though  ?"  asked 

A ,  in  a  low  voice.  "  I  did  not  know  Forester  shot  like 

that." 

"  Sometimes  he  does.  When  he's  cool.  He  is  not  certain  ; 
that  is  his  only  fault.  One  day  he  is  the  coolest  man  I  ever 
saw  in  a  field,  and  the  next  the  most  impetuous ;  but  when  he 

is  cool,  he  shoots  splendidly.  As  you  say,  A ,  I  never  saw 

anything  better  done  in  my  life.  It  was  the  perfection  of  cool- 
ness and  quickness  combined." 

"  I  cannot  conceive  how  it  was  done  at  all.  How  he  brought 
up  and  fired  that  first  barrel  with  a  cap  between  his  thumb  and 
forefinger !  Why,  I  could  not  fire  a  gun  so,  in  cold  blood  !" 

"Nor  could  he,  probably.  Deliberate  promptitude  is  the 
thing !  Well,  Tom,  what  do  you  think  of  that  1  Wasn't  that 
pretty  shooting  ?" 

"  It  was  so,  pretty  shootin',"  responded  the  fat  man,  quite  de- 
lighted out  of  his  crusty  mood.  "  I  guess  the  darned  little 
critter's  got  three  barrels  to  his  gun  somehow ;  leastwise  it 
seems  to  me,  I  swon,  'at  he  fired  her  off  three  times  without 
loadin' !  I  guess  I'll  quit  tryin'  to  shoot  agin  Frank,  to-day." 

"  I  told  you  so !"  said  Harry  to  the  Commodore,  with  a  low 

*  If  I  had  not  seen  the  whole  of  this  scene  with  my  eyes,  and  had  I 
not  witnesses  of  the  fact,  I  would  scarce  dare  to  relate  it.  From  the  cut- 
ting the  first  bird  to  atoms,  all  is  strictly  true. 


WARWICK    WOODLANDS.  ll 

laugh,  and  then  added  aloud — "  I  think  you  may  as  well,  Tom 
— for  I  don't  believe  the  fellow  will  miss  another  bird  to-day." 

And  in  truth,  strange  to  say,  it  fell  out,  in  reality,  nearly  as 
Archer  had  spoken  in  jest.  The  whole  party  shot  exceedingly 
well.  The  four  birds,  which  Tom  and  the  Commodore  had 
missed  at  the  first  start,  were  found  again  in  an  old  ragwort 
field,  and  brought  to  bay  ;  and  of  the  twenty-three  quail  which 
Forester  had  marked  down  into  the  bog  meadow,  not  one  bird 
escaped,  and  of  that  bevy  not  one  bird  did  Frank  miss,  killing 
twelve,  all  of  them  double  shots,  to  his  own  share,  and  beating 
Archer  in  a  canter. 

But  that  sterling  sportsman  cared  not  a  stiver;  too  many 
times  by  far  had  he  had  the  field,  too  sure  was  he  of  doing  the 
same  many  a  time  again,  to  dislike  being  beaten  once.  Besides 
this,  he  was  always  the  least  jealous  shot  in  the  world,  for  a 
very  quick  one ;  and,  in  this  instance,  he  was  perhaps  better 
pleased  to  see  his  friend  "  go  in  and  win/'  than  he  would  have 
been  to  do  the  like  himself. 

Exactly  at  two  o'clock,  by  A 's  repeater,  the  last  bird 

was  bagged ;  making  twenty-seven  quail,  forty-nine  snipe,  two 
ruffed  grouse,  and  one  woodcock,  bagged  in  about  five  hours. 

"  So  far,  this  is  the  very  best  day's  sport  I  ever  saw,"  said 
Archer ;  "  and  two  things  I  have  seen  which  I  never  saw  be- 
fore ;  a  whole  bevy  of  quail  killed  without  the  escape  of  one 
bird,  and  a  whole  bevy  killed  entirely  by  double  shots,  except 

the  odd  bird.     You,  A ,  have  killed  three  double  shots — I 

have  killed  three — Tom  Draw  one  double  shot,  and  the  odd 
bird ;  and  Master  Frank  there,  confound  him,  six  double  shots 
running — the  cleverest  thing  I  ever  heard  of,  and,  in  Forester's 
case,  the  best  shooting  possible.  I  have  missed  one  bird,  you 
two,  and  Tom  three." 

"  But  Tom  beant  a  goin'  to  miss  no  more  birds,  I  can  tell 
you,  boy.  Tom's  drinked  agin,  and  feels  kind  o'  righter  than 
he  did — kind  o'  first  best !  You'd  best  all  drink,  boys — the 
spring's  handy,  close  by  here ;  and  after  we  gits  down  acrost 
the  road  into  the  big  swamp,  and  Hell-Hole,  there  arn't  a  drop 
o'  water  fit  to  drink,  till  we  gits  way  down  to  Aunt  Sally's  big 
spring-hole,  jest  to  home." 

"  I  second  the  motion,"  said  Harry ;  "  and  then  let  us  be 
quick,  for  the  day  is  wearing  away,  and  we  have  got  a  long 
beat  yet  before  us.  I  wish  it  were  a  sure  one.  But  it  is  not. 
Once  in  three  or  four  years  we  get  a  grand  day's  sport  in  the 


172  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

big  swamp  ;  but  for  one  good  day  we  have  ten  bad  ones. 
However,  we  are  sure  to  find  a  dozen  birds  or  so  in  Hell-Hole ; 
and  a  bevy  of  quail  in  the  Captain's  swamp,  shan't  we,  Tom  ?" 

"  Yes,  if  we  gits  so  far;  but  somehow  or  other  I  rather  guess 
we'll  find  quite  a  smart  chance  o'  cock.  Captain  Reed  was 
down  there  a'  Satterday,  and  he  saw  heaps  on  'em." 

"  That's  no  sure  sign.  They  move  very  quickly  now.  Here 
to-day  and  there  to-morrow,"  said  Archer.  "  In  the  large 
woods  especially.  In  the  small  places  there  are  plenty  of  sure 
finds.'1 

<k  There  harn't  been  nothing  of  frosts  yet  keen  enough  to  stir 
them,"  said  Tom.  "  I  guess  we'll  find  them.  And  there  harn't 
been  a  gun  shot  off  this  three  weeks  there.  Hoel's  wife's  ben 
down  sick  all  the  fall,  and  Halbert's  gun  busted  in  the  critter's 
hand." 

"Ah!  did  it  hurt  him ?" 

"  Hurt  him  some — skeart  him  considerable,  though.  I  guess 
he's  quit  shootin'  pretty  much.  But  come — here  we  be,  boys. 
I'll  keep  along  the  outside,  where  the  walkings  good.  You  git 

next  me,  and  Archer  next  with  the  dogs,  and  A inside  of 

all.  Keep  right  close  to  the  cedars,  A ;  all  the  birds  'at 

you  flushes  will  come  stret  out  this  aways.  They  never  flies 
into  the  cedar  swamp.  Archer,  how  does  the  ground  look  ?" 

"  I  never  saw  it  look  so  well,  Tom.  There  is  not  near  so 
much  water  as  usual,  and  yet  the  bottom  is  all  quite  moist  and 
soft." 

"  Then  we'll  get  cock  for  sartain." 

"  By  George !"  cried  A ,  "  the  ground  is  like  a  honey- 
comb, with  their  borings  ;  and  as  white  in  places  with  their 
droppings,  as  if  there  had  been  a  snow  fall !" 

"  Are  they  fresh  droppings,  A ?" 

"  Mark  !  Ah  !  Grouse  !  Grouse  !  for  shame.  There  he  is 
down.  Do  you  see  him,  Harry  ?" 

"  Ay  !  ay !     Did  Grouse  flush  him  ?" 

"  Deliberately,  at  fifty  yards  off.     I  must  lick  him." 

"  Pray  do  ;  and  that  mercifully." 

"And  that  soundly,"  suggested  Frank,  as  an  improvement. 

"  Soundly  is  mercifully,"  said  Harry,  "  because  one  good  flog- 
ging settles  the  business ;  whereas  twenty  slight  ones  only  ha- 
rass a  dog,  and  do  nothing  in  the  way  of  correction  or  preven- 
tion." 

"  True,  oh  king !"  said  Frank,  laughing.     "  Now  let  us  go 


WARWICK   WOODLANDS.  173 

on ;  for,  as  the  bellowing  of  that  brute  is  over,  I  suppose  *  chas- 
tisement has  hidden  her  head.'  " 

And  on  they  did  go  ;  and  sweet  shooting  they  had  of  it ;  all 
the  way  down  to  the  thick  deep  spot,  known  by  the  pleasing 
sobriquet  of  Hell-Hole. 

The  birds  were  scattered  everywhere  throughout  the  swamp, 
so  excellent  was  the  condition  of  the  ground ;  scattered  so 
much,  that,  in  no  instance  did  two  rise  at  once ;  but  one  kept 
flapping  up  after  another,  large  and  lazy,  at  every  few  paces  ; 
and  the  sportsmen  scored  them  fast,  although  scarcely  aware 
how  fast  they  were  killing  them.  At  length,  when  they  reached 
the  old  creek-side,  and  the  deep  black  mud-holes,  and  the 
tangled  vines  and  leafy  alders,  there  was,  as  usual,  a  quick, 
sharp,  and  decisive  rally.  Before  the  dogs  were  thrown  into  it, 
Frank  was  sent  forward  to  the  extreme  point,  and  the  Commo- 
dore out  into  the  open  field,  on  the  opposite  side  from  that  oc- 
cupied by  fat  Tom. 

On  the  signal  of  a  whistle,  from  each  of  the  party,  Harry 
drove  into  the  brake  with  the  spaniels,  the  setters  being  now 
consigned  to  the  care  of  Timothy  ;  and  in  a  moment,  his  loud 
"  Hie  cock  !  Hie  cock  !  Pur-r-r — Hie  cock  !  good  dogs  !"  was 
succeeded  by  the  shrill  yelping  of  the  cockers,  the  flap  of  the  fast 
rising  birds,  and  the  continuous  rattling  of  shots. 

In  twenty  minutes  the  work  was  done ;  and  it  was  well  that 
it  was  done ;  for,  within  a  quarter  of  an  hour  afterwards,  it  was 
too  dark  to  shoot  at  all. 

In  that  last  twenty  minutes  twenty-two  cock  were  actually 
brought  to  bag,  by  the  eight  barrels  ;  twenty-eight  had  been 
picked  up,  one  by  one,  as  they  came  down  the  long  swamp,  and 
one  Harry  had  killed  in  the  morning.  When  Timothy  met 
them,  with  the  horses,  at  the  big  oak  tree,  half  an  hour  after- 
ward— for  he  had  gone  off  across  the  fields,  as  hard  as  he  could 
foot  it  to  the  farm,  as  soon  as  he  had  received  the  setters — it 
was  quite  dark  ;  and  the  friends  had  counted  their  game  out 
regularly,  and  hung  it  up  secundum  artem  in  the  loops  of  the 
new  game  bag. 

It  was  a  huge  day's  sport — a  day's  sport  to  talk  about  for 
years  afterward — Tom  Draw  does  talk  about  it  now ! 

Fifty-one  woodcock,  forty-nine  English  snipe,  twenty-seven 
quail,  and  a  brace  of  ruffed  grouse.  A  hundred  and  twenty- 
nine  head  in  all,  on  unpreserved  ground,  and  in  very  wild 


174  WARWICK    WOODLANDS. 

walking.  It  is  to  be  feared  it  will  never  be  done  any  more  in 
the  vale  of  Warwick.  For  this,  alas !  was  ten  years  ago. 

When  they  reached  Tom's  it  was  decided  that  they  should 
all  return  home  on  the  morrow  ;  that  Harry  should  attend  to 
the  procuring  his  purchase  money  ;  and  Tom  to  the  cheapening 
of  the  purchase. 

In  addition  to  this,  the  old  boy  swore,  by  all  his  patron  saints, 
that  he  would  come  down  in  spring,  and  have  a  touch  at  the 
snipe  he  had  heerd  Archer  tell  on  at  Pine  Brook. 

A  capital  supper  followed ;  and  of  course  lots  of  good  liquor, 
and  the  toast,  to  which  the  last  cup  was  quaffed,  was 

LONG  LIFE  TO  HARRY  ARCHER,  AND  LUCK  TO  HIS  SHOOTING  BOX, 

to  which  Frank  Forester  added 

"  I  wish  he  may  get  it." 

And  so  that  party  ended ;  all  of  its  members  hoping  to  enjoy 
many  more  like  it,  and  that  very  speedily. 


TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK, 


THE  SPORTSMAN'S  SPREAD. 

THE  long  cold  winter  had  passed  away  and  been  succeeded 
by  the  usual  alternations  of  damp  sloppy  thaws,  and  piercing 
eastern  gales,  which  constitute  a  North  American  Spring ;  and 
now  the  croaking  of  the  bull-frogs,  heark  from  every  pool  and 
puddle,  the  bursting  buds  of  the  young  willows,  and,  above  all, 
the  appearance  of  Shad  in  market,  announced  to  the  experienced 
sportsman,  the  arrival  of  the  English  Snipe  upon  the  marshes. 
For  some  days  Harry  Archer  had  been  busily  employed  in 
overhauling  his  shooting  apparatus,  exercising  his  setters, 
watching  every  change  of  wind,  and  threatening  a  speedy  ex- 
pedition into  the  meadows  of  New  Jersey,  so  soon  as  three  days 
of  easterly  rain  should  be  followed  by  mild  weather  from  the 
southward.  Anxiously  looked  for,  and  long  desired,  at  last  the 
eastern  storm  set  in,  cold,  chilling,  misty,  with  showers  of  smo- 
ky driving  rain,  and  Harry  for  two  entire  days  had  rubbed  his 
hands  in  ecstacy  ;  while  Timothy  stood  ever  in  the  stable  door 
— his  fists  plunged  deep  in  the  recesses  of  his  breeches'  pockets, 
and  a  queer  smile  illuminating  the  honest  ugliness  of  his  bluff 
visage — patiently  watching  for  a  break  in  the  dull  clouds — his 
harness  hanging  the  while  in  readiness  for  instant  use,  with 
every  crest  and  turret  as  bright  as  burnished  gold  ;  his  wagon 
all  prepared,  with  bear-skins  and  top-coats  displayed ;  and  his 
own  kit  packed  up  in  prompt  anticipation  of  the  first  auspicious 
moment.  The  third  dark  morning  had  dawned  dingily  ;  the 
rain  still  drifted  noiselessly  against  the  windows,  while  gutters 
overflowed,  and  kennels  swollen  into  torrents  announced  its 
volume  and  duration.  There  was  not  then  the  least  temptation 
to  stir  out  of  doors,  and,  sulky  myself,  I  was  employed  in  coax- 
ing a  sulky  cigar  beside  a  yet  more  sulky  fire,  with  an  empty 
coffee-cup  and  a  large  quarto  volume  of  Froissart  upon  the 
table  at  my  elbow,  when  a  quick  cheery  triple  rap  at  the  street 


176  TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK. 

door  announced  a  visitor,  and  was  succeeded  instantly  by  a 
firm  rapid  footstep  on  the  stairs,  accompanied  by  the  multitudi- 
nous pattering  and  whimpering  of  spaniels.  Without  the 
ceremony  of  a  knock  the  door  flew  open ;  and  in  marched, 
with  his  hat  on  one  side,  a  dirty  looking  letter  in  his  hand, 
and  Messrs.  Dan  and  Flash  at  his  heel,  the  renowned  Harry 
Archer. 

"  Here's  a  lark,  Frank,"  exclaimed  that  worthy,  pitching  the 
billet  down  upon  the  table,  and  casting  himself  into  an  arm- 
chair :  "  Old  Tom  is  to  be  here  to-day  to  dinner,  and  wants  to 
go  with  us  to  the  snipe  meadow.  So  we  will  dine,  if  it  so 
please  yon,  at  my  house  at  three — I  have  invited  Mae  to  join 
us — and  start  directly  after  for  Pine  Brook." 

"  The  devil !'*  I  responded,  somewhat  energetically  ;  "  what, 
in  this  rain  ?" 

"  Rain — yes,  indeed.  The  wind  has  hauled  already  to  the 
westward  of  the  south,  and  we  shall  have  a  starlight  night,  and 
a  clear  day  to-morrow,  and  grand  sport,  I'll  warrant  you  !  Rain 
— yes  !  I'm  glad  it  does  rain ;  it  will  keep  cockney  gunners  off 
the  meadows.'7 

"But  will  Tom  really  be  here  ?  How  do  you  know  it  ?  Have 
you  seen  him  ?" 

"  Read — read,  man  !v  he  responded,  lighting  the  while  a  dark 
cheroot,  and  lugging  out  my  gun-case  to  inspect  its  traps.  And 
I  in  due  obedience  took  up  the  billet-doux,  which  had  produced 
this  notable  combustion.  It  was  a  thin,  dirty,  oblong  letter, 
written  across  the  lines  upon  ruled  paper,  with  a  pencil,  wafered, 
and  stamped  with  a  key,  and  bearing  in  round  school-boy  char- 
acters the  following  direction  : — 

for  Mr.  Harrye  Archere  Newe  Yorke  Esqro 
69  Merceye  streete. 

Internally  it  ran — 

Olde  friende 

havin  to  git  some  grocerees  down  to  Yorke,  I  reckons 
to  quit  here  on  Satterdaye,  and  so  be  i  can  fix  it  counts  to  see  you  tews- 
daye  for  sartain.  quaile  promises  to  be  considerable  plentye,  and  cocke 
has  come  on  most  ongodly  thicke,  i  was  down  to  Sam  Blainses  one  night 
a  fortnite  since  and  heerd  a  heape  on  them  a  drumminge  and  ehatteringe 
everywheres  round  aboute.  if  snipes  is  come  on  yit  i  reckon  i  could 
git  awaye  a  daye  or  soe  down  into  Jarsey  ways — no  more  at  preasente 
from  ever  youre  old  friende 

Thomas  Drawe 
i  shall  look  in  at  Merceye  streete  bout  three  oclocke  dinner  time  i  guesse, 


tOM    DRAWLS    VISIT    TO    t»IN£    BROOit.  177 

li  Well !  that  matter  seems  to  be  settled,'*  answered  I,  when  I 
had  finished  the  perusal  of  this  most  notable  epistle.  "  I  sup- 
pose he  will  be  here  to  the  fore  !'' 

"  Sartain  !"  responded  Archer,  grinning;  "and  do  you  for 
once,  if  possible — which  I  suppose  it  is  not — be  in  time  for  dinner ; 
I  will  not  wait  five  minutes,  and  I  shall  give  you  a  good  feed  ; 
pack  up  your  traps,  and  Tim  shall  call  for  them  at  two.  We 
dine  at  three,  mind  !  Start  from  my  door  at  half-past  five,  so 
as  to  get  across  in  the  six  o'clock  boat.  Hard  will  be  looking 
out  for  us,  I  know,  about  this  time,  at  Pine  Brook  ;  and  we 
shall  do  it  easy  in  three  hours,  for  the  roads  will  be  heavy.  Come 
along,  dogs.  Good  bye,  Frank.  Three  o'clock !  now  don't  be 
late,  there's  a  good  lad.  Here  Flash  !  here  Dan  !"  and  gather- 
ing his  Macintosh  about  him,  exit  Harry. 

Thereupon  to  work  I  went  with  a  will ;  rummaged  up  gun, 
cleaning-rod,  copper-caps,  powder-horns,  shot-pouch,  and  all  the 
et  ceteras  of  shooting,  which — being  always  stowed  away  with 
so  much  care  at  the  end  of  one  season,  that  they  are  undis- 
coverable  at  the  beginning  of  the  next — are  sources  of  eternal 
discomfiture  to  those  most  all-accomplished  geniuses,  high 
sportsmen's  servants :  got  out  and  greased  my  fen  boots  with 
the  fit  admixture  of  tallow,  tar,  beeswax,  and  Venice  turpentine  ; 
hunted  up  shooting  jacket,  corduroys,  plaid  waistcoat,  and 
check  shirts  ;  and,  in  fact,  perpetrated  the  detested  task  of  pack- 
ing, barely  in  time  for  Timothy,  who,  as  he  shouldered  my  port- 
manteau, and  hitched  up  the  waistband  of  his  own  most  volu- 
minous unmentionables,  made  out  in  the  midst  of  grins  and 
nods,  and  winks,  to  deliver  himself  to  the  following  effect — 

"  Please  sur,  measter  says,  if  you  ple-ase  to  moind  three  o't 
clock — for  he'll  be  dommed,  he  said,  please  Measter  Forester,  av 
he  waits  haaf  a  minit — " 

"  Very  well,  Tim,  very  well— that'll  do — I'll  be  ready." 

"  And  Measter  Draw  be  coom'd  tew — nay  but  Ay  do  think 
'at  he's  fatter  noo  than  iver — ecod,  Ayse  laff  to  see  him  doon  i' 
t'  mossy  meadows  laike — he'll  swear,  Ayse  warrant  him." 

And  with  a  burst  of  merriment,  that  no  one  pair  of  mortal 
lips  save  Timothy's  alone  could  ever  have  accomplished,  he  with- 
drew, leaving  me  to  complete  my  toilet ;  in  which,  believe  me, 
gentle  reader,  mindful  of  a  good  feed  and  of  short  law,  I  made 
no  needless  tarrying. 

The  last  stroke  of  the  hour  appointed  had  not  yet  stricken 
when  I  was  on  the  steps  of  Harry's  well-known  snug  two-storied 


178  TOM   DRAWLS   VISIT   TO    PlNfi    BROOK* 

domicile ;  in  half  a  minute  more  I  was  at  my  ease  in  his  study, 
where,  to  my  no  small  wonder,  I  found  myself  alone,  with  no 
other  employment  than  to  survey,  for  the  nine  hundredth  time, 
the  adornments  of  that  exquisite  model  for  that  most  snug  of  all 
things,  a  cozy  bachelor's  peculiar  snuggery.  It  was  a  small  back 
room,  with  two  large  windows  looking  out  upon  a  neatly  trim- 
med grass-plat  bordered  with  lilacs  and  laburnums  ;  its  area,  of 
sixteen  feet  by  fourteen,  was  strewn  with  a  rich  Turkey  carpet, 
and  covered  with  every  appurtenance  for  luxury  and  comfort 
that  could  be  brought  into  its  limits  without  encumbering  its 
brief  dimensions.  A  bright  steel  grate,  with  a  brilliant  fire  of 
Cannel  coal,  occupied  the  centre  of  the  south  side,  facing  the 
entrance,  while  a  superb  book-case  and  secretaire  of  exquisite 
mahogany  filled  the  recess  on  either  hand  of  it,  their  glass  doors 
showing  an  assortment,  handsomely  bound,  of  some  eight  hun- 
dred volumes,  classics,  and  history,  and  the  gems  of  modern  poe- 
sie  and  old  romance.  Above  the  mantel-piece,  where  should  have 
hung  the  mirror,  was  a  wide  case,  covering  the  whole  front  of 
the  pier,  with  doors  of  plate  glass,  through  which  might  be  dis- 
covered, supported  on  a  rack  of  ebony,  and  set  off  by  a  back- 
ground of  rich  crimson  velvet,  the  select  armory,  prized  above 
all  his  earthly  goods  by  their  enthusiastic  owner — consisting  of 
a  choice  pair  of  twin  London-made  double-barrels,  a  short 
splendidly  finished  once-ball  rifle,  a  heavy  single  pigeon  gun,  a 
pair  of  genuine  Kuchenreuter's  nine-inch  duelling  pistols,  and  a 
smaller  pair  by  Joe  Manton,  for  the  belt  or  pocket — all  in  the 
most  perfect  order,  and  ready  for  immediate  use.  Facing  this 
case  upon  the  opposite  wall,  along  the  whole  length  of  which 
ran  a  divan,  or  wide  low  sofa,  of  crimson  damask,  hung  two  oil 
paintings,  originals  by  Edward  Landseer,  of  dogs — hounds,  ter- 
riers, and  all,  in  fact,  of  canine  race,  mongrels  of  low  degree 
alone  excepted — under  these  were  suspended,  upon  brackets, 
two  long  cluck  guns,  and  an  array  of  tandem  and  four-horse 
whips,  besides  two  fly-rods,  and  a  cherry-stick  Persian  pipe,  ten 
feet  at  least  in  length.  The  space  between  the  windows  was 
occupied  by  two  fine  engravings,  one  of  the  Duke  of  Welling- 
ton, the  other  of  Sir  Walter  in  his  study — Harry's  political  and 
literary  idols  ;  a  library  centre  table,  with  an  inkstand  of  costly 
buhl,  covered  with  periodicals  and  papers,  and  no  less  than  four 
sumptuous  arm-chairs  of  divers  forms  and  patterns,  completed 
the  appointments  of  the  room ;  but  the  picture  still  would  be 
incomplete,  were  I  to  pass  over  a  huge  tortoise-shell  Tom  Cat, 


TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK.  179 

which  dozed  upon  the  rug  in  amicable  vicinity  to  our  old  friends 
the  spaniels  Dan  and  Flash.  It  did  not  occupy  me  quite  so  long 
to  take  a  survey  of  these  well-remembered  articles,  as  it  has 
done  to  describe  them  ;  nor,  in  fact,  had  that  been  the  case, 
should  I  have  found  the  time  to  reconnoitre  them  ;  for  scarcely 
was  I  seated  by  the  fire,  before  the  ponderous  trampling  of  Old 
Tom  might  be  heard  on  the  stair-case,  as  in  vociferous  converse 
with  our  host  he  came  down  from  the  chamber,  wherein,  by  some 
strange  process  of  persuasion  assuredly  peculiar  to  himself,  Harry 
had  forced  him  to  go  through  the  ceremony  of  ablution,  pre- 
vious to  his  attack  upon  the  viands,  which  were  in  truth  not 
likely  to  be  dealt  with  more  mercifully  in  consequence  of  this  de- 
lay. Another  moment,  and  they  entered — "  Arcades  ambo  "  duly 
rigged  for  the  occasion — Harry  in  his  neat  claret-colored  jocky- 
coat,  white  waistcoat,  corduroys  and  gaiters — Tom  in  Canary- 
colored  vest,  sky-blue  dress  coat  with  huge  brass  buttons,  gray 
kerseymere  unmentionables,  with  his  hair  positively  brushed,  and 
his  broad  jolly  face  clean  shaved,  and  wonderfully  redolent  of 
soap  and  water.  The  good  old  souPs  face  beamed  with  unfeign- 
ed delight,  and  grasping  me  affectionately  by  the  hand — 

"  How  be  you  ?''  he  exclaimed — "  How  be  you,  Forester — you 
looks  well,  anyways." 

"Why,  I  am  well,  Tom,"  responded  I,  "  but  I  shall  be  better 
after  I've  had  that  drink  that  Archer's  getting  ready — yotfre 
dry,  I  fancy — " 

'*  Sartain  !"  was  the  expected  answer ;  and  in  a  moment  the 
pale  Amontillado  sherry  and  the  bitters  were  paraded — but  no 
such  darned  washy  stutf,  as  he  termed  it,  would  the  old  Trojan 
look  at,  much  less  taste  ;  and  Harry  was  compelled  to  produce 
the  liquor  stand,  well  stored  with  potent  waters,  when  at  the 
nick  of  time  McTavish  entered  in  full  fig  for  a  regular  slap-up 
party,  not  knowing  at  all  whom  he  had  been  asked  to  meet. 
Not  the  least  discomposed,  however,  that  capital  fellow  was  in- 
stantly at  home,  and  as  usual,  up  to  every  sort  of  fun. 

"  What,  Draw,"  said  he,  "  who  the  devil  thought  of  seeing 
you  here — when  did  you  come  down  ?  Oh  !  the  dew,  certainly," 
he  continued,  in  reply  to  Archer,  who  was  pressing  a  drink  on 
him — "  the  mountain  dew  for  me — catch  a  Highlander  at  any 
other  dram,  when  Whasky's  to  the  fore — ay,  Tom  ?" 

"  Catch  you  at  any  dram,  exceptin'  that  what's  strongest.  See 
to  him  now  !"  as  Mac  tossed  off  his  modicum,  and  smacked  his 
lips  approvingly  ;  "  see  to  him  now  !  I'd  jist  as  lief  drink  down 


180  TO&  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOX. 

so  much  fire,  and  he  pours  it  in — pours  it  in,  jist  like  as  one  it 
was  mother's  milk  to  the  darned  critter." 

"  Ple-ase  Sur,  t'  dinner's  re-ady,"  announced  Timothy,  throw- 
ing open  the  folding  doors,  and  displaying  the  front  room,  with 
a  beautiful  fire  blazing,  and  a  good  old  fashioned  round  table, 
covered  with  exquisite  white  damask-linen,  and  laid  with  four 
covers,  each  flanked  by  a  most  unusual  display  of  glasses — a 
mighty  bell-mouthed  rummer,  namely,  on  a  tall  slender  stock 
with  a  white  spiral  line  running  up  through  the  centre,  an  apt 
substitute  for  that  most  awkward  of  all  contrivances,  the  ordi- 
nary champagne  glass — a  beautiful  green  hock  goblet,  with  a 
wreath  of  grapes  and  vine  leaves  wrought  in  relief  about  the 
rim — a  massy  water  tumber  elaborately  diamond-cut — and  a 
capacious  sherry -glass  so  delicate  and  thin  that  the  slender  crystal 
actually  seemed  to  bend  under  the  pressure  of  your  lip ;  nor, 
were  the  liquors  wanting  in  proportion — two  silver  wine-coolers, 
all  frosted  over  with  the  exudations  from  the  ice  within,  display- 
ed the  long  necks  of  a  champagne  flask  and  a  bottle  of  Johan- 
nisbergher,  and  four  decanters  hung  out  their  labels  of  Port,  Ma- 
deira, brown  Sherry,  and  Amontillado — while  two  or  three  black, 
copper-wired  bottles,  in  the  chimney-corner,  announced  a  stock 
of  heavy-wet,  for  such  as  should  incline  to  malt.  I  had  expected 
from  Tom's  lips  some  preternatural  burst  of  wonder,  at  this  dis- 
play of  preparation,  the  like  of  which,  as  I  conceived,  had  never 
met  his  eyes  before — but,  whether  he  had  been  indoctrinated  by 
previous  feeds  at  Harry's  hospitable  board,  or  had  learned  by 
his  own  native  wit  the  difficult  lesson  of  nil  admirarij  he  sat 
down  without  any  comment,  though  he  stared  a  little  wildly, 
when  he  saw  nothing  eatable  upon  the  table,  except  a  large  dish 
of  raw  oysters,  flanked  by  a  lemon  and  a  cruet  of  cayenne. 
With  most  ineffable  disdain,  he  waved  off  the  plate  which  Tim 
presented  to  him,  with  a  "  Consarn  you,  I  arnt  a  goin  to  give 
my  belly  cold  with  no  such  chillin'  stuff  as  that.  I'd  like  to 
know  now,  Archer,  if  this  bees  all  that  you're  a  goin'  to  give  us 
— for  if  so  be  it  is,  I'll  go  stret  down  to  the  nigger's  yonder,  and 
git  me  a  beef  steak  and  onions  ?" 

"  Why,  not  exactly,  Tom,"  responded  Archer,  when  he  could 
speak  for  laughing — "  these  are  merely  for  a  whet  to  give  us  an 
appetite." 

"  A  blamed  queer  sort  of  wet,  I  think — why  I'd  have  thought 
that  ere  rum,  what  McTavish  took,  would  have  been  wet  enough, 
till  what  time  as  you  got  at  the  champagne — and,  as  for  appe- 


TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  rlNE  BROOK.  181 

tite,  I  reckon  now  a  man  whose  guts  is  always  cravin — cravin — 
like  yours  be,  had  better  a  taken  somethin'  dry  to  keep  it  down 
like,  than  a  tvet  to  moisten  it  up  more." 

By  this  time  the  natives,  which  had  so  moved  Tom's  indigna- 
tion, were  succeeded  by  a  tureen  of  superb  mutton  broth,  to 
which  the  old  man  did  devote  himself  most  assiduously,  while 
Mac  was  loud  in  approbation  of  the  brouse,  saying  it  only  want- 
ed bannocks  to  be  perfection. 

"  Cuss  you,  you're  niver  satisfied,  you  aint,"  Tom  had  com- 
menced, when  he  was  cut  short  by  "  The  Sherry  round — Tim  " 
— from  our  host — "  you'd  better  take  the  brown,  Tom,  it's  the 
strongest !"  The  old  man  thrust  his  rummer  forth,  as  being  in- 
finitely the  biggest,  and — Timothy  persisting  in  pouring  out  the 
strong  and  fruity  sherry  into  the  proper  glass — burst  out  again 
indignantly — 

"  I'd  be  pleased  to  know,  Archer,  now,  why  you  puts  big 
glasses  on  the  table,  if  you  don't  mean  they  should  be  drinked 
out  of — to  tantalize  a  chap,  I  reckon  " — down  went  the  wine  at 
one  gulp,  and  the  exquisite  aroma  conquered — he  licked  his  lips, 
sighed  audibly,  smiled,  grinned,  then  laughed  aloud.  "  I  see — 
I  see,"  he  said  at  last ;  "  you  reckon  it's  too  prime  to  be  drinked 
out  of  big  ones — and  I  dun*  know  but  what  you're  right  too — 
but  what  on  airthe  is  we  to  drink  out  of  these — not  water,  that 
I  know  !  leastways,  I  niver  see  none  in  this  house,  no  how." 

"  The  green  one  is  for  brandy,  Tom !"  McTavish  answered. 

"  Ey,  ey  !"  Tom  interrupted  him,  "  and  they  makes  them 
green,  I  guess,  so  as  no  one  shall  see  how  much  a  body  takes — 
now  that's  what  I  does  call  gentz<A  !" 

u  And  this  large  plain  one,"  added  Mac,  looking  as  grave  as 
a  judge,  and  lifting  one  of  the  huge  champagne  glasses — "  is  a 
dram  glass  for  drinking  Scotch  whiskey — what  they  call  in  the 
Highlands  a  thimblefull — " 

"  They  take  it  as  a  medicine  there,  you  see,  Tom,"  continued 
Archer  ;  "  a  preventive  to  a  disease  well  known  in  those  parts, 
called  the  Scotch  fiddle — did  you  ever  hear  of  it  ?" 

"  Carnt  say,"  responded  Tom  ;  "  what  like  is't  ?" 

"  Oh,  Mac  will  tell  you,  he  suffers  from  it  sadly — didn't  you 
see  him  tuck  in  the  specific — it  was  in  compliment  to  him  I  had 
the  thimbles  set  out  to-day.'' 

"  Oh  !  that's  it,  ay  ?"  the  fat  man  answered.  "  Well,  I  don't 
care  if  I  do  " — in  answer  to  Harry's  inquiry  whether  he  would 
take  some  boiled  shad,  which,  with  caper  sauce,  had  replaced 


182  TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK. 

the  soup — "  I  don't  care  if  I  do — shads  isn't  got  to  Newburgh 
yet,  leastways  I  harnt  seen  none — " 

Well  might  he  say  that,  by  the  way,  for  they  had  scarce  ap- 
peared in  New  York,  and  were  attainable  now  only  at  the  mo- 
derate rate  of  something  near  their  weight  in  silver.  After  the 
fish,  a  dram  of  Ferintosh  was  circulated  in  one  small  glass,  ex- 
quisitely carved  into  the  semblance  of  a  thistle,  which  Draw 
disposed  of  with  no  comment  save  a  passing  wonder  that  when 
men  could  get  applejack,  they  should  be  willing  to  take  up  with 
such  smoky  trash  as  that. 

A  saddle  of  roast  mutton,  which  had  been  hanging,  Harry 
said,  six  weeks,  a  present  from  that  excellent  good  fellow,  the 
Captain  of  the  Swallow,  followed,  and  with  it  came  the  split- 
corks — "  By  heavens,''  I  cried,  almost  involuntarily — "  what  a 
superb  champagne'' — suffering,  after  the  interjection,  something 
exceeding  half  a  pint  of  that  delicious,  dry,  high-flavored,  and 
rich-bodied  nectar,  to  glide  down  my  gullet. 

"  Yes'' — answered  Harry — "  yes — alack  !  that  it  should  be 
the  last!  This  is  the  last  but  one  of  the  first  importation  of  the 
Crown — no  such  wine  ever  came  before  into  this  country,  no 
such  has  followed  it.  We  shall  discuss  the  brace  to-day — what 
better  opportunity  ?  Here  is  McTavish,  its  originator,  the  best 
judge  in  the  land"!  Frank  Forester,  who  has  sipped  of  the  like 
at  Crockie's,  and  a  place  or  two  beside,  which  we  could  men- 
tion— myself,  who  am  not  slow  at  any  decent  tipple,  and  Thomas 
Draw,  who  knows  it,  I  suppose,  from  Jarsey  Cider!" 

"  Yes,  and  I  knows  it  from  the  Jarsey  champagne  tew — 
which  you  stick  into  poor  chaps,  what  you  fancies  doosn't  know 
no  better — give  me  some  more  of  that  ere  mutton  and  some 
jelly — you  are  most  darned  sparin'  of  your  jelly  now — and 
Timothy,  you  snoopin  rascal,  fill  this  ere  thimbleful  agin  with 
that  Creawn  wine !" 

Wild  fowl  succeeded,  cooked  to  a  turn,  hot  claret  duly  quali- 
fied with  cayenne  in  a  sauce-boat  by  their  side — washed  down 
by  the  last  flask  of  Mac's  champagne,  of  which  the  last  round 
we  quaffed  sorrowfully,  as  in  duty  bound,  to  the  importer's 
health,  and  to  the  memory  of  the  crowned  head  departed — the 
only  crown,  as  Harry  in  his  funeral  oration,  truly  and  pithily 
observed,  which  gives  the  lie  to  the  assertion  that  "  uneasy  lies 
the  head  that  wears  a  crown." 

No  womanish  display  of  pastry  marred  the  unity  of  this  most 
solemn  masculine  repast,  a  Stilton  cheese,  a  red  herring,  with 


TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  JPIKE  fcfcoofc.  183 

Goshen  butter,  pilot  bread,  and  porter,  concluded  the  rare  ban- 
quet. A  plate  of  devilled  biscuit,  and  a  magnum  of  Latour, 
furnished  forth  the  dessert,  which  we  discussed  right  jovially ; 
while  Timothy,  after  removing  Harry's  guns  from  their  post  of 
honor  above  the  mantel-piece  to  their  appropriate  cases,  stole 
away  to  the  stable  to  prepare  his  cattle, 

"  Now,  boys, "  said  Harry,  "make  the  most  of  your  time. 
There  is  the  claret,  the  best  in  my  opinion  going — for  I  have 
always  prized  Mac's  black-sealed  Latour  far  above  Lynch's  Mar- 
gaux — yes,  even  above  that  of  '26.  For  Lynch's  wine,  though 
exquisitely  delicate,  was  perilous  thin ;  I  never  tasted  it  without 
assenting  to  Serjeant  Bothwell's  objection,  '  Claret's  ower  cauld 
for  my  stamach,'  and  desiring  like  him  to  qualify  it  '  wi'  a  tass 
of  eau  di  vieC  Now  this  wine  has  no  such  fault,  it  has  a 
body—" 

"  I  don't  know,  Archer,"  interrupted  Tom>  "  what  that  ere 
sarjeant  meant  with  his  darned  o  di  vee^  but  I  know  now  that 
I'd  a  cussed  sight  rayther  have  a  drink  o'  brandy,  or  the  least 
mite  of  applejack,  than  a  whole  keg  of  this  red  rot-gut !" 

"  You've  hit  the  nail  on  the  head,  Tom,'5  answered  I,  while 
Harry,  knowing  the  old  man's  propensities,  marched  off  in 
search  of  the  liquor-stand — "  It  ivas  brandy  that  the  serjeant 
meant !" 

"  Then  why  the  thunder  didn't  he  say  brandy,  like  a  man 
• — instead  of  coming  out  with  his  snivelling  o  di  vee?" 

"  Why,  Tom,"  said  I,  in  explanation,  "  he  admired  your  fa- 
vorite drink  so  much,  that  he  used  the  French  name  as  most 
complimentary  ;  it  means  water  of  life  /" 

"  What,  he  watered  it  too,  did  he  1  I  thought  he  must  be  a 
darned  poor  drinkin'  man,  to  call  things  out  of  their  right 
names — precious  little  of  the  raal  stuff  had  he  ever  drinked,  I 
reckon,  watered  or  not — o  di  veef  Cuss  all  such  Latin  trash, 
says  L  But  here  't  comes.  Take  a  drop,  doo,  McTavish,  it's 
better  fifty  times,  and  healthier  tew,  than  that  eternal  darned 
sour  old  vinegar,  take  a  drop,  doo  /'' 

"  Thank  you,  120,"  answered  McTavish,  well  contented  with 
his  present  beverage,  and  after  a  pause  went  on  addressing 
Archer — -"  I  wish  to  heaven  you'd  let  me  know  what  you  were 
up  to — I'd  have  gone  along." 

"  What  hinders  you  from  going  now  ?"  said  Harry.  "  I  can 
rig  you  out  for  the  drive,  and  we  can  stop  at  the  Carlton,  and 


184  TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PI&E  SHOOS. 


get  your  gun,  and  the  rest  of  jour  traps.     I  wish  to  the  Lord 
you  would  !" 

"  Oh  !  oh  !"  Tom  burst  out,  on  the  instant,  "  oh  !  oh  !  I  won't 
go,  sartain,  less  so  be  McTavish  concludes  on  going  tew  —  we 
carn't  do  nothing  without  him." 

It  was  in  vain,  however,  that  we  all  united  in  entreating  him 
to  go  along—he  had  business  to  do  to-morrow  —  he  was  afraid 
of  getting  his  feet  wet,  and  fifty  other  equally  valid  excuses,  till 
Harry  exclaimed  —  "  It's  no  use,  I  can  tell  you  Donald's  bluid's 
up,  and  there's  an  end  of  it  —  " 

Whereat  McTavish  laughed,  and  saying  that  he  did  not  think, 
for  a  very  short-sighted  man,  snipe-shooting  up  to  his  waist  in 
water,  and  up  to  his  knees  in  mud,  was  the  great  thing  it  is 
cracked  up  to  be,  filled  himself  a  pretty  sufficient  dose  of  hot 
toddy,  and  drank  to  our  good.  luck.  Just  at  this  moment,  up 
rattled,  ready  packed,  with  the  dogs  in,  the  gun-cases  stowed, 
and  store  of  topcoats,  capes,  and  bear-skins,  all  displayed,  the 
wagon  to  the  door* 

"  I  need  not  tell  you,  Mac,''  cried  Archer,  as  he  wrung  the 
gallant  Celt  by  the  hand,  "  to  make  yourself  at  home  —  we  must 
be  off,  you  know  ;"  —  then  opening  the  window,  "  hand  in  those 
coats,  Timothy,  out  of  that  drizzling  rain  —  I  thought  you  had 
more  sense." 

"Nay,  then,  they're  no  but  just  coom  fra  under  t'  approns," 
responded  Tim,  not  over  and  above  delighted  at  the  reflection 
on  his  genius  —  "  they're  droy  as  booans,  Ayse  warrant  urn." 

"  Well  !  hand  them  in  then  —  hand  them  in  —  where's  your 
coat,  Tom  ?  —  that's  it  ;  now  look  here,  buckle  on  this  crape  of 
mine  over  your  shoulders,  and  take  this  India-rubber  hood,  and 
tie  it  over  your  hat,  and  you  may  laugh  at  four  -and-  twenty- 
hours'  rain,  let  alone  two.  You  have  got  toggery  enough, 
Frank,  I  conclude  —  so  here  goes  for  myself."  Whereupon  he 
indued,  first  a  pea-jacket  of  extra  pilot-cloth,  and  a  pair  of 
English  mud-boots,  buttoning  to  the  mid-thigh  ;  and,  above 
these,  a  regular  box  coat  of  stout  blue  dreadnought,  with  half  a 
dozen  capes  ;  an  oil-skin  covered  hat,  with  a  curtain  to  protect 
his  neck  and  ears,  fastening  with  a  hook  and  eye  under  the 
chin,  completing  his  attire.  In  we  got,  thereupon,  without 
more  ado.  Myself  and  Timothy,  with  the  two  setters,  in  the 
box-seat  behind,  the  leathern  apron  unrolled  and  buttoned  up, 
over  a  brace  of  buffalo  robes,  hairy  side  inward,  to  our  middles 
•  —  Harry  and  Tom  in  front,  with  one  superb  black  bearskin 


TOM   DRAW  S    VISIT   TO    PINE    BROOK.  185 

drawn  up  by  a  ring  and  strap  to  the  centre  of  the  back  rail  be- 
tween them,  and  the  patent  water-proof  apron  hooked  up  to 
either  end  of  the  seat — the  effeminacy  of  umbrellas  we  despised 
— our  cigars  lighted,  and  our  bodies  duly  muffled  up,  off  we 
went,  at  a  single  chirrup  of  our  driver,  whose  holly  four-horse 
whip  stood  in  the  socket  by  his  side  unheeded,  as  with  his 
hands  ungloved,  and  his  beautiful,  firm,  upright  seat  upon  the 
box,  he  wheeled  off  at  a  gentle  trot,  the  good  nags  knowing 
their  master's  hand  and  voice,  as  well  as  if  they  had  been  his 
children,  and  obeying  them  far  better. 

Our  drive,  it  must  be  admitted,  through  the  heavy  rain  was 
nothing  to  brag  of.  Luckily,  however,  before  we  had  got  over 
much  more  than  half  our  journey,  the  storm  gradually  ceased, 
as  the  night  fell ;  and,  by  the  time  we  reached  the  big  swamp, 
it  was  clear  all  over  the  firmament ;  with  a  dark,  dark  blue  sky, 
and  millions  of  stars  twinkling  gayly — and  the  wind  blowing 
freshly  but  pleasantly  out  of  the  nor-norwest ! 

"  Did  I  not  tell  you  so,  boys  ?"  exclaimed  Archer,  joyously 
pointing  with  his  whip  to  the  bright  skies—"  we'll  have  a  glori- 
ous day  to-morrow."  Just  as  he  spoke,  we  reached  the  little 
toll-gate  by  the  Morris  Canal ;  and,  as  we  paused  to  change  a 
fifty  cent  piece,  what  should  we  hear,  high  in  air,  rapidly  pass- 
ing over  our  heads,  but  the  well-known  "  sJceap !  skeap?"  the 
thin  shrill  squeak  of  unnumbered  snipe,  busy  in  their  nocturnal 
voyage  ;  and  within  an  hour  thereafter  we  arrived  at  our  jour- 
ney's end,  where  a  glass  all  round  of  tip-top  champagne  brandy 
— a  neat  snug  supper  of  capital  veal  cutlets,  ham  and  eggs,  and 
pork  steaks  and  sausages,  finished  the  day,  and  tired  enough,  we 
went  to  bed  early  and  dreamed. 


THE  SNIPE. 

"  WHAT  sort  of  a  morning  is  it,  Timothy  ?"  asked  I,  rubbing 
my  eyes,  as  I  sat  bolt  upright  in  bed  on  the  irruption  of  that 
fidus  Achates,  some  half  hour  before  sunrise,  into  my  little  dor- 
mitory ;  "  What  sort  of  a  morning  is  it  2" 

"  A  varry  bonny  mornin,  Measter  Frank,7'  responded  he ; 
"  there  was  a  leetle  tooch  o'  whaite  frost  aboot  midnaight,  but 
sin'  t*  moon  set,,  there's  been  a  soop  o*  warm  ra-ain,  and  it's 


186  TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK. 

dooll  noo,  and  saft  loike,  wi'  V  wind  sootherly — but  it's  boon  to 
be  noogbt  at  all,  Ayse  warrant  it.  T'  Soon'll  be  oot  enoo — see 
if  he  beant — and  t'  snaipe  '11  laie  laike  steans.  Ayse  awa  noo, 
and  fetch  t'  het  watter — t'  veal  cootlets  is  i'  t'  pann,  and  John 
Van  Dyne  he's  been  a  wa-aiting  iver  sin  't  got  laight." 

u  That's  not  very  long,  then,"  answered  I,  springing  out  of 
bed,  "  at  all  events ;  for  it's  as  dark  as  pitch  now ;  bring  me  a 
caudle,  I  can't  shave  by  this  light;  there  !  leave  the  door  into 
the  parlor  open,  and  tell  John  to  come  in  and  amuse  me  while 
I'm  shaving.  Is  Mr.  Archer  up  ?" 

"  Oop  ?  Weel  Ay  wot  he  is  oop  ;  and  awa  wi'  Measter  Draa, 
and  t'  lang  goons,  doon  to  t'  brigg  ;  to  watch  t'  doocks  flay,  but 
Van  Dyne  says  t'  doocks  has  dean  flaying." 

"  Yes,  yes — they'se  quit  sartain,"  answered  a  merry  voice 
without,  and  in  stalked  John,  the  best  fowl-shot,  the  best  snipe- 
marker,  the  best  canoe-paddler,  and  the  best  fellow  every  way, 
in  New  Jersey. 

"  How  are  you,  John  ? — any  birds  on  the  Piece  ?" 

"  Nicely  !"  he  answered,  to  my  first  query — "  nicely," — shak- 
ing me  warmly  by  the  hand,  and,  after  a  pause,  added,  "  I  can't 
say  as  there  be  ;  the  Piece  is  too  wet  altogether  !" 

"  Too  wet— aye  ?  that's  bad,  John  !" 

"Lord,  yes — too  wet  entirely;  I  was  half  over  it  with  the 
canoe  last  week,  and  didn't  see — no  not  half  a  dozen,  and  they 
was  round  the  edges  like,  where  there  wasn't  no  good  lying  ; 
there  was  a  heap  o'  yellow  legs,  though,  and  a  smart  chance  o* 
plover." 

"  Oh,  hang  the  plover,  John  ;  but  shall  we  find  no  snipe  ?" 

"  Not  upon  neither  of  the  Pieces,  no  how — but  there  was 
heaps  of  them  a  flyin'  over  all  last  night ;  yes !  yes !  I  guess 
Archer  and  I  can  fix  it  so  as  we'll  git  a  few — but,  do  tell,  who's 
that  darned  fat  chap  as  I  see  goin'  down — " 

Here  he  was  interrupted  by  the  distant  report  of  a  heavy  gun, 
followed  almost  upon  the  instant  by  a  second. 

"  Ding !"  he  exclaimed,  "  but  there's  a  flight  now !  ar'n't 
there  ?  I  guess  now,  Mr.  Forester,  I'd  as  well  jist  run  down 
with  old  Shot,  leastwise  he'll  fetch  urn,  if  so  be  they've  fallen  in 
the  water." 

"  Do  !  do  !"  cried  I,  "  by  all  means,  John  ;  and  tell  them  to 
come  back  directly ;  for  half  the  breakfast's  on  the  table,  and 
I'll  be  ready  by  the  time  they're  here." 

By  the  time  I  had  got  my  jacket  on,  and  while  I  was  in  the 


TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK.  187 

act  of  pulling  up  my  long  fen  boots  before  the  cheerful  fire,  I 
perceived  by  the  clack  of  tongues  without,  that  the  sportsmen 
had  returned  ;  and  the  next  moment  Harry  entered,  accom- 
panied by  Fat  Tom  in  his  glory,  with  no  less  than  two  couple 
and  a  half  of  that  most  beautiful  and  delicate  of  wild-fowl,  the 
green- winged  teal. 

"  That's  not  so  bad,  Frank,"  exclaimed  Harry,  depositing,  as 
he  spoke,  his  heavy  single-barrel  in  the  chimney-corner,  and 
throwing  himself  into  an  arm-chair;  "  that's  not  so  bad  for  ten 
minutes'  work,  is  it  ?'' 

"Better,  a  darned  sight,"  Tom  chimed  in,  u  than  layin  snoozin 
till  the  sun  is  high  ;  but  that's  the  way  with  these  etarnal  drinkin 
men,  they  does  keep  bright  just  so  long  as  they  keeps  a  liquorin  ; 
but  when  that's  done  with,  you  don't  hear  nothin  more  of  them 
till  noon,  or  arter.  Cuss  all  sich  drunken  critters.'' 

"  That's  a  devilish  good  one,"  answered  I ;  "  the  deuce  a  one 
of  you  has  shaved,  or  for  that  matter,  washed  his  face,  to  the 
best  of  my  belief;  and  then,  because  you  tumble  out  of  bed 
like  Hottentots,  and  rush  out,  gun  in  hand,  with  all  the  accu- 
mulated filth  of  a  hard  day's  drive,  and  a  long  night's  sweat, 
reeking  upon  you,  you  abuse  a  Christian  gentleman,  who  gets 
up  soberly,  and  dresses  himself  decently — for  idleness  and  what 
not !" 

"  Soberly  !"  answered  Tom  ; — "  Soberly  !  Jest  hear,  now 
Harry, — Soberly  ! — -jest  like  as  though  he  hadn't  a  had  his  bit- 
ters, and  blamed  bitter  bitters,  too  !'7 

"  Not  a  drop,  upon  honor,"  I  replied  ;  "  not  a  drop  this 
morning  I" 

"What? — oh!  oh!  that's  the  reason,  then,  why  you're  so 
'tarnal  cross.  Here,  landlord,  bring  us  in  them  cider  sperrits — 
I  harnt  had  only  a  small  taste  myself — take  a  drink,  Frank,  and 
you'll  feel  slick  as  silk  torights,  I  tell  you." 

"Thank  you,  no  /"  said  I,  falling  foul  of  the  veal  cutlets  deli- 
cately fried  in  batter,  with  collops  of  ham  interspersed,  for  which 
my  worthy  host  is  justly  celebrated — "  thank  you,  no  !  bitters 
are  good  things  in  their  way,  but  not  when  breakfast  treads  so 
close  upon  the  heels  of  them  !" 

"  Tak  a  soop,  Measter  Frank — tak  a  soop,  sur !"  exhorted 
Timothy,  who  was  bearing  around  a  salver  laden  with  tum- 
blers, the  decanter  gracing  his  better  hand.  "  Tak  a  soop,  thou'lt 
be  all  t'  betther  for't  enoo.  Measter  Draa  'si'  t'  roight  o'  't. 
It's  varry  good  stooff  Ay'se  oophaud  it." 


188  TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK. 

"  I  dont  doubt  that  at  all,  Tim ;  natheless  I'll  be  excused  just 
now." 

I  was  soon  joined  at  the  table  by  the  fat  man  and  Archer, 
who  were  so  busily  employed  in  stowing  away  what  Sir  Dugald 
Dalgetty  terms  pro  van  t,  that  few  words  passed  between  us.  At 
length  when  the  furor  edendi  was  partially  suppressed  :  u  Now 
then,  John,"  said  Harry,  "  we  are  going  to  be  here  two  days — 
to-morrow,  that  is,  and  to-day — what  are  we  to  beat,  so  MS  to 
get  ground  for  both  days  1  Begin  with  the  long  meadow,  I 
suppose,  and  beat  the  vlies  toward  the  small  piece  home,  and 
finish  here  before  the  door." 

"That's  it,  I  reckon,''  answered  the  jolly  Dutchman,  "  but 
you  knows  pretty  nigh  as  well  as  I  can  tell  you." 

"  Better,  John,  better,  if  I  knew  exactly  how  the  ground  was 
— but  that  will  be  the  driest,  won't  it  ?" 

"  Sartain,"  replied  the  other,  "  but  we'll  get  work  enough 
without  beating  the  ground  hereaways  before  the  house ;  we'll 
keep  that  to  begin  upon  to-morrow,  and  so  follow  up  the  big 
meadow,  and  to  Loises,  and  all  along  under  the  widow  Mulford's, 
if  it  holds  dry  to-day;  and  somehow  now  I  kind  o'  guess  it  will. 
There'll  be  a  heap  o'  birds  there  by  to-morrow — they  were  a- 
flyin'  cur'ous,  now,  last  night,  I  tell  you." 

"  Well,  then,  let  us  be  moving.  Where's  the  game-bag, 
Timothy  ?  give  it  to  John  !  Is  the  brandy  bottle  in  it,  and  the 
luncheon  ?  hey  ?" 

"  Ay,  ay  !  Sur  !''  answered  Tim  ;  "  t'  brandy  's  t'  big  wicker 
bottle,  wi'  t'  tin  cup — and  soom  cauld  pork  and  crackers  'i  't 
gam  bag—and  a  spare  horn  of  powder,  wi'  a  pund  in  't.  Here, 
tak  it,  John  Van  Dyne,  and  mooch  good  may't  do  ye — and — 
haud  a  bit,  man  !  here's  t'  dooble  shot  belt,  sling  it  across  your 
shoulder,  and  awa  wi'  you." 

Everything  being  now  prepared,  and  having  ordered  dinner 
to  be  in  readiness  at  seven,  we  lighted  aur  cigars  and  started ; 
Harry,  with  the  two  setters  trotting  steadily  at  his  heels,  and 
his  gun  on  his  shoulder,  leading  the  way  at  a  step  that  would 
have  cleared  above  five  miles  an  hour,  I  following  at  my  best 
pace,  Tom  Draw  puffing  and  blowing  like  a  grampus  in  shoal 
water,  and  John  Van  Dyne  swinging  along  at  a  queer  loping 
trot  behind  me.  We  crossed  the  bridges  and  the  causeway  by 
which  we  had  arrived  the  previous  night,  passed  through  the 
toll-gate,  and,  turning  short  to  the  right  hand,  followed  a  nar- 
row sandy  lane  for  some  three  quarters  of  a  mile,  till  it  turned 


TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK.  189 

off  abruptly  to  the  left,  crossing  a  muddy  streamlet  by  a  small 
wooden  bridge.  Here  Harry  paused,  flung  the  stump  of  his 
cheroot  into  the  ditch,  and  dropping  the  butt  of  his  gun,  began 
very  quietly  to  load,  I  following  his  example  without  saying  a 
word. 

"  Here  we  are,  Frank,'5  said  he  ;  "  this  long  stripe  of  rushy 
fields,  on  both  sides  of  the  ditch,  is  what  they  call  the  long  mea- 
dow, and  rare  sport  have  I  had  on  it  in  my  day,  but  I'm  afraid 
it's  too  wet  now — we'll  soon  see,  though,"  and  he  strode  across 
the  fence,  and  waved  the  dogs  off  to  the  right  and  left.  "  You 
take  the  right  hand,  Frank ;  and  Tom,  keep  you  the  ditch  bank, 
all  the  way ;  the  ground  is  firmest  there  ;  we've  got  the  wind 
in  our  favor  ;  a  little  farther  off,  Frank,  they  wont  lie  hard  for 
an  hour  or  two,  at  all  events ;  and  I  don't  believe  we  shall  find 
a  bird  before  we  cross  the  next  fence." 

Heads  up  and  sterns  down,  off  raced  the  fleet  setters,  beating 
the  meadows  fairly  from  the  right  hand  fence  to  the  ditch, 
crossing  each  other  in  mid  course,  and  quartering  the  ground 
superbly — but  nothing  rose  before  them,  nor  did  their  motions 
indicate  the  slightest  taint  of  scent  upon  the  dewy  herbage.  The 
ground,  however,  contrary  to  Harry's  expectations,  was  in  prime 
order — loose,  loamy,  moist,  black  soil,  with  the  young  tender 
grass  of  spring  shooting  up  everywhere,  bright,  succulent  and 
sweet ;  tall  tufts  of  rushes  here  and  there,  and  patches  of  brown 
flags,  the  reliques  of  the  by-gone  year,  affording  a  sure  shelter 
for  the  timid  waders.  The  day  was  cool  and  calm,  with  a  soft 
mellow  light — for  the  sun  was  curtained,  though  not  hidden, 
by  wavy  folds  of  gauze-like  mist — and  a  delicious  softness  in 
the  mild  western  breeze,  before  which  we  were  wending  our 
way,  as  every  one  who  would  bag  snipe,  must  do,  down  wind. 
We  crossed  the  second  fence  ;  the  ground  was  barer,  wetter, 
splashy  in  places,  and  much  poached  by  the  footsteps  of  the 
cattle,  which  had  been  pastured  there  last  autumn.  See,  the  red 
dog  has  turned  off  at  a  right  angle  from  his  course  ;  he  lifts  his 
head  high,  straightens  his  neck  and  snuffs  the  air  slackening  his 
pace  to  a  slow,  guarded  trot,  and  waving  his  stern  gently — Chase 
sees  him,  pauses,  almost  backs  ! 

"  Look  to,  Frank — there's  a  bird  before  him  !" 

Skeap !  skeap  !  skeap  ! — up  they  jumped  eighty  yards  off 
at  the  least,  as  wild  as  hawks  ;  skimming  the  surface  of  the 
meadow,  and  still  by  their  shrill  squeak  calling  up  other  birds 
to  join  them  till  seven  or  eight  were  on  the  wing  together  ; 


190  TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK. 

then  up  they  rose  clearly  defined  against  the  sky,  and  wheeled 
in  short  zigzags  above  the  plain,  as  if  uncertain  whither  they 
should  fly,  till  at  length  they  launched  off  straight  to  the  right 
hand,  and  after  a  flight  of  a  full  mile,  pitched  suddenly  and 
steeply  down  behind  a  clump  of  newly  budding  birches. 

"  I  knows  where  them  jokers  be,  Mr.  Archer ;"  exclaimed 
Yari  Dyne. 

"  In  heaven,  I  guess  the)''  be,7'  responded  Master  Draw ; 
"  leastwise  they  flew  far  enough  to  be  there,  anyhow  !" 

"  No,  no !  Tom,  they've  not  gone  so  very  far,"  said  Archer, 
"  and  there's  good  lying  for  them  there,  I  shall  be  satisfied  if 
they  all  go  that  way.  To  ho  !  to  ho  !"  he  interrupted  himself, 
for  the  dogs  had  both  come  to  a  dead  point  among  some  tall 
flags ;  and  Shot's  head  cocked  on  one  side,  with  his  nose  pointed 
directly  downward,  and  his  brow  furrowed  into  a  knotty  frown, 
showed  that  the  bird  was  under  his  very  feet.  "  Come  up,  Tom 
• — come  up,  you  old  sinner — don't  you  see  Shot's  got  a  snipe 
under  his  very  nose  ?" 

"  Well !  well !  I  sees,"  answered  Tom  ;  "  I  sees  it,  darn  you  ! 
but  give  a  fellow  time,  you'd  best,  in  this  etarnal  miry  mud- 
hole  !"  and,  sinking  mid  leg  deep  at  every  step,  the  fat  man 
floundered  on,  keeping,  however,  his  gun  ever  in  position,  and 
his  keen  quick  eye  steadily  fixed  on  the  stanch  setter. 

"  Are  you  ready,  now  ?  I'll  flush  him,"  exclaimed  Harry, 
taking  a  step  in  advance  ;  and  instantly  up  sprang  the  bird,  with 
his  sharp,  thrice- repeated  cry,  and  a  quick  flutter  of  his  wings, 
almost  straight  into  the  air  over  the  head  of  Tom,  striving  to 
get  the  wind. 

Bang  !  Draw's  first  barrel  was  discharged,  the  snipe  being 
at  that  moment  scarce  ten  feet  from  the  muzzle,  the  whole  load 
going  like  a  bullet,  of  course  harmlessly  ! — his  second  followed, 
but,  like  the  first,  in  vain  ;  for  the  bird,  having  fairly  weathered 
him,  was  flying  very  fast,  and  twisting  all  the  time,  directly  up 
wind.  Then  Harry's  gun  was  pitched  up,  and  the  trigger  drawn 
almost  before  the  butt  was  at  his  shoulder.  Down  went  the 
bird  ;  slanting  away  six  yards,  though  killed  stone  dead,  in  the 
direction  of  his  former  flight,  so  rapidly  had  he  been  going, 
when  the  shot  struck  him. 

"  Mark  !  mark  !''  I  shouted,  "  Harry.  Mark  !  mark  !  behind 
you  !"  As  three  more  birds  took  wing,  before  the  red  dog,  and 
were  bearing  off,  too  far  from  me,  to  the  right  hand,  like  those 
which  had  preceded  them.  I  had,  when  I  cried  "  mark,"  not 


TOM  DRAWS  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK.  191 

an  idea  that  he  could  possibly  have  killed  one  ;  for  he  had 
turned  already  quite  round  in  his  tracks,  to  shoot  the  first  bird, 
and  the  others  had  risen  wild,  in  the  first  place,  and  were  now 
forty  yards  off  at  the  least ;  but  quick  as  thought  he  wheeled 
again,  cocking  his  second  barrel  in  the  very  act  of  turning,  and 
sooner  almost  than  I  could  imagine  the  possibility  of  his  even 
catching  sight  of  them,  a  second  snipe  was  fluttering  down 
wing-tipped. 

"  Beautiful,  beautiful  indeed,"  I  cried,  involuntarily  ;  "  the 

rickest  and  the  cleanest  double-shot  I  have  seen  in  many  a 
y-" 

"It  warnt.so  darned  slow,  no  how,"  replied  Tom,  somewhat 
crest-fallen,  as  he  re-loaded  his  huge  demi-cannon. 

"  Slow !  you  old  heathen  !  if  you  could  shoot  better  than  a 
boy  five  years  old,  we  should  have  had  three  birds — I  could 
have  got  two  of  those  last  just  as  well  as  not,  if  you  had 
knocked  the  first  clown  like  a  Christian  sportsman — but  look  ! 
look  at  those  devils,"  Harry  went  on,  pointing  toward  the  birds, 
which  had  gone  off,  and  at  which  he  had  been  gazing  all  the 
time  ;  "  confound  them,  they're  going  to  drum  !" 

And  so  indeed  they  were  ;  and  for  the  first  time  in  my  life  I 
beheld  a  spectacle,  which  I  had  heard  of  indeed,  but  never  had 
believed  fully,  till  my  own  eyes  now  witnessed  it.  The  two 
birds,  which  had  been  flushed,  mounted  up  !  up  !  scaling  the 
sky  in  short  small  circles,  till  they  were  quite  as  far  from  this 
dull  earth,  as  the  lark,  when  "  at  heaven's  gate  he  sings  " — and 
then  dropt  plumb  down,  as  it  would  seem,  fifty  feet  in  an  in- 
stant, with  a  strange  drumming  sound,  which  might  be  heard 
for  a  mile  or  more.  Then  up  they  soared  again,  and  again  re- 
peated their  manoeuvre  ;  while  at  each  repetition  of  the  sound 
another  and  another  bird  flew  up  from  every  part  of  the  wide 
meadow,  and  joined  those  in  mid  ether  ;  till  there  must  have 
been,  at  the  least  reckoning,  forty  snipe  soaring  and  drumming 
within  the  compass  of  a  mile,  rendering  the  whole  air  vocal 
with  that  strange  quivering  hum,  which  has  been  stated  by 
some  authors — and  among  these  by  the  ingenious  and  observant 
Gilbert  White — to  be  ventriloquous  ;  although  it  is  now  pretty 
generally — and  probably  with  justice — conceded  to  be  the 
effect  of  a  vibratory  motion  of  the  quill  feathers  set  obliquely, 
so  as  to  make  the  air  whistle  through  them.  For  above  an. 
hour  did  this  wild  work  continue ;  not  a  bird  descending  from 
its  "  bad  eminence,"  but,  on  the  contrary,  each  one  that  we 


192  TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK, 

Hushed  out  of  distance,  for  they  would  not  lie  to  the  dogs  at  all, 
rising  at  once  to  join  them.  "  We  have  no  chance,"  said  Harry, 
"  no  chance  at  all  of  doing  anything,  unless  the  day  changes, 
and  the  sun  gets  out  hot,  which  I  fear  it  wont.  Look  out^  Tom, 
watch  that  beggar  to  your  right  there ;  he  has  done  drumming, 
and  is  going  to  'light ;"  and  with  the  word,  sheer  down  he 
darted  some  ninety  yards  from  <lli£  spot  where  we  stood,  till  he 
was  scarce  three  feet  above  the  marsh ;  when  he  wheeled  off, 
and  skimmed  the  flat,  uttering  a  sharp  harsh  clatter,  entirely 
different  from  any  sound  I  ever  heard  proceed  from  a  snipe's  bill 
before,  though  in  wild  weather  in  the  early  spring  time  I  have 
heard  it  since,  full  many  a  day.  The  cry  resembled  more  the 
cackling  of  a  hen,  which  has  just  laid  an  egg,  than  any  oth-er 
sound  I -can  compare  it  to  ;  and  consisted  of  a  repetition  some 
ten  times  in  succession  of  the  syllable  kek,  so  hard  and  jarring 
that  it  was  difficult  to  believe  it  the  utterance  of  so  small  a 
bird.  But  if  I  was  surprised  at  what  I  heard,  what  was  I, 
when  I  saw  the  bird  alight  on  the  top  rail  of  a  high  snake 
fence,  and  continue  there  five  or  ten  minutes,  when  it  dropped 
down  into  the  long  marsh  grass.  Pointing  toward  the  spot- 
where  I  had  marked  it,  I  was  advancing  stealthily,  when  Archer 
said,  "  You  may  try  if  you  like,  but  I  can  tell  you  that  you 
wont  get  near  him!"  I  persevered,  however,  and  fancied  I 
should  get  within  long  shot,  but  Harry  was  quite  right ;  for  he 
rose  again  skeap  !  skeap  !  and  went  off  as  wild  as  ever,  tower- 
ing as  before,  and  drumming  ;  but  for  a  short  time  only,  when, 
tired  apparently  of  the  long  flight  he  had  already  taken,  he 
stooped  from  his  elevation  with  the  same  jarring  chatter,  and 
alighted — this  time  to  my  unmitigated  wonder — upon  the 
topmost  spray  of  a  large  willow  tree,  which  grew  by  the  ditch 
side!* 

"It's  not  the  least  use — not  the  least — pottering  after  these 
birds  now,"  said  Harry.  "  We'll  get  on  to  the  farther  end  of  the 
meadows,  where  the  grass  is  long,  and  where  they  may  lie 
something  better ;  and  we'll  beat  back  for  these  birds  in  the 
afternoon,  if  Dan  Phoebus  will  but  deign  to  shine  out." 

*  I  am  aware  that  this  will  be  difficulty  believed  even  in  the  United 
States.  But  I  will  not,  on  that  account,  fail  to  record  so  singular  a  fact 
Not  a  week  before  I  saw  this  myself,  I  was  told  of  the  fact  by  a  gentle- 
man, since  an  Alderman,  of  New  York ;  and  I  am  now  ashamed  to  say, 
doubted  it  Michael  Sanford,  of  Newark,  N".  J.,  was  along  with  me,  mid 
can  certify  to  the  fact 


TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK.  193 

On  we  went,  therefore,  Tom  Draw  swearing  strange  oaths  at 
the  birds,  that  acted  so  darnation  cur'ous,  and  at  myself  and 
Harry  for  being  such  etarnal  fools  as  to  have  brought  him 
sweatin  into  them  darned  stinkin  mud-holes ;  and  I,  to  say  the 
truth,  almost  despairing  of  success.  In  half  an  hour's  walking 
we  did,  however,  reach  some  ground,  which — yielding  far  more 
shelter  to  the  birds,  as  being  meadow-land  not  pastured,  but 
covered  with  coarse  rushy  tussocks — seemed  to  promise  some- 
thing better  in  the  way  of  sport ;  and  before  we  had  gone  many 
yards  beyond  the  first  fence,  a  bird  rose  at  long  distance  to 
Tom's  right,  and  was  cut  down  immediately  by  a  quick  snap 
shot  of  that  worthy,  on  whose  temper,  and  ability  to  shoot,  the 
firmer  ground  and  easier  walking  had  already  begun  to  work  a 
miracle. 

"  Who  says  I  can't  shoot  now,  no  more  than  a  five-year  old, 
cuss  you !"  he  shouted,  dropping  the  butt  of  his  gun  deliberate* 
ly,  when  skeap !  skeap !  startled  by  the  near  report,  two  more 
snipe  rose  within  five  yards  of  him  ! — fluttered  he  was  assuredly, 
and  fully  did  I  expect  to  see  a  clear  miss — but  he  refrained,  took 
time,  cocked  his  gun  coolly,  and  letting  the  birds  get  twenty 
yards  away,  dropped  that  to  his  right  hand,  killed  clean  with 
his  second  barrel,  while  Harry  doubled  up  the  other  in  his  ac- 
customed style,  I  not  having  as  yet  got  a  chance  of  any  bird. 

"  Down,  charge !"  said  Harry  ;  "  down,  charge!  Shot,  you 
villain  !" — for  the  last  bird  had  fallen  wing-tipped  only,  and  was 
now  making  ineffectual  attempts  to  rise,  bouncing  three  or  four 
feet  from  the  ground,  with  his  usual  cry,  and  falling  back  again 
only  to  repeat  his  effort  within  five  minutes — this  proved  too 
much,  as  it  seemed,  for  the  poor  dog's  endurance,  so  that,  after 
rising  once  or  twice  uneasily,  and  sitting  down  again  at  his  mas- 
ters's  word,  he  drew  on  steadily,  and  began  roading  the  running 
bird,  regardless  of  the  score  which  he  might  ha-ve  been  well 
aware  he  was  running  up  against  himself.  During  this  business 
Chase  had  sat  pretty  quiet,  though  I  observed  a  nervous  twitch- 
ing of  ears,  and  a  latent  spark  of  the  devil  in  his  keen  black  eye, 
which  led  me  to  expect  some  mischief,  so  that  I  kept  my  gun 
all  ready  for  immediate  action ;  and  well  it  was  that  I  did  so ; 
for  the  next  moment  he  dashed  in,  passing  Shot,  who  was 
pointing  steadily  enough,  and  picked  up  the  bird  after  a  trifling 
scuffle,  the  result  of  which  was  that  a  couple  more  snipe  were 
flushed  wild  by  the  noise.  "Without  a  moment's  hesitation  I  let 
drive  at  them  with  both  barrels,  knocking  the  right  hand  snipe 
9 


194  TOM   DRAWrS   VISIT   TO   PINE    BROOK. 

down  very  neatly ;  the  left  hand  bird,  however,  pitched  up  a 
few  feet  just  as  I  drew  the  trigger,  and  the  consequence  was 
that,  as  I  fancied,  I  missed  him  clean. 

"  There !  there  !  you  stoopid,  blundering,  no-sich-thing — 
there  !  now  who  talks  of  missing  ?  That  was  the  nicest,  pretti- 
est, easiest  shot  I  ever  did  see ;  and  you — you  shiftless  nigger 
you — you  talks  to  me  of  missing  !'* 

"  Shut  up  !  shut  up  !  you  most  incorrigible  old  brute  !"  re- 
sponded Harry,  who  had  been  steadily  employed  in  marking  the 
missed  bird,  as  I  deemed  him.  "  Shut  up  your  stupid  jaw ! 
That  snipe's  as  dead  as  the  old  cow  you  gave  us  for  supper,  the 
last  time  we  slept  at  Warwick,  though  from  a  different  cause ; 
for  the  cow,  Jem  Flyn  says,  died  of  the  murrain  or  some  other 
foul  rotten  disorder ;  and  that  small  winged  fellow  has  got  a 
very  sufficient  dose  of  blue  pill  to  account  for  his  decease !  So 
shut  up !  and  keep  still  while  I  take  the  change  out  of  these 
confounded  dogs,  or  we  shall  have  every  bird  we  get  near  to- 
day flushed  like  those  two.  Ha !  Shot !  Ha !  Chase  !  Down 
cha-a-arge  —  down  cha-a-arge — will  you  ?  will  you  ?  Down 
charge !" 

And  for  about  five  minutes,  nothing  was  heard  upon  the 
meadows  but  the  resounding  clang  of  the  short  heavy  dog- 
whip,  the  stifled  grunts  of  Shot,  and  the  vociferous  yells  of 
Chase,  under  the  merited  and  necessary  chastisement. 

"  Down  charge,  now,  will  you  ?"  he  continued,  as,  pocketing 
his  whip,  he  wiped  his  heated  brow,  picked  up  his  gun,  and 
proceeded  to  bag  the  scattered  game.  "  There !  that  job's 
done,"  he  said,  "  and  a  job  that  I  hate  most  confoundedly  it  is 
— but  it  must  be  done  now  and  then ;  and  the  more  severely, 
when  necessary,  the  more  mercifully !" 

"  Now  that's  what  I  doos  call  a  right  down  lie,"  the  fat  man 
interposed.  "  You  loves  it,  and  you  knows  you  do — you  loves 
to  lick  them  poor  dumb  brutes,  cause  they  can't  lick  back,  no 
how.  You,  Chase,  darn  you,  quit  mouthing  that  there  snipe — 
quit  mouthing  it,  I  sav — else  I'll  cut  out  the  snoopin  soul  of 
you !» 

"  So  much  for  Tom  Draw's  lecture  upon  cruelty  to  animals — 
that's  what  I  call  rich  !"  answered  Harry.  "  But  come,  let  us 
get  on.  I  marked  that  bird  to  a  yard,  down  among  those 
dwarf  rose-bushes ;  and  there  we  shall  find,  I'll  be  bound  on  it, 
good  shooting.  How  very  stupid  of  me  not  to  think  of  that 


TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK.  195 

spot !     You  know,  John,  we  always  find  birds  there,  when  they 
can't  be  found  anywhere  else." 

On  we  went,  after  a  re-invigorating  cup  of  mountain-dew, 
with  spirits  raised  at  the  prospect  of  some  sport  at  last,  and  as 
we  bagged  the  snipe  which — Harry  was  right — had  fallen  killed 
quite  dead,  the  sun  came  out  hot,  broad,  and  full.  The  birds 
were  lying  thick  among  the  stunted  bushes  and  warm  bubbling 
springs  which  covered,  in  this  portion  of  the  ground,  some 
twenty  acres  of  marsh  meadow ;  and  as  the  afternoon  waxed 
warm,  they  lay  right  well  before  the  dogs,  which,  having  learned 
the  consequences  of  misdemeanor,  behaved  with  all  discretion. 
We  shot  well  I  and  the  sport  waxed  so  fast  and  furious,  that  till 
the  shades  of  evening  fell,  we  had  forgotten — all  the  three — that 
our  luncheon,  saving  the  article  of  drams,  was  still  untasted ; 
and  that,  when  we  assembled  at  seven  of  the  clock  in  Hard's 
cozey  parlor,  and  shook  out  of  bag  and  pocket  our  complement 
of  sixty-three  well-grown  and  well-fed  snipe,  we  were  in  reason- 
able case  to  do  good  justice  to  a  right  good  supper. 


THE  PARTING  DRINK. 

BREAKFAST  concluded,  the  next  morning  we  pulled  our  fen 
boots  on,  and  on  the  instant  up  rattled  Timothy,  who  had  dis- 
appeared a  few  minutes  before,  with  the  well-known  drag  to  the 
door,  guns  stowed  away,  dogs  whimpering,  and  sticking  out 
their  eager  noses  between  the  railings  of  the  box — game  bags 
well  packed  with  lots  of  prog  and  of  spare  ammunition. 

Away  we  rattled  at  a  brisk  pace,  swinging  round  corner  after 
corner,  skilfully  shaving  the  huge  blocks  of  stone,  and  dexter- 
ously quartering  the  deep  ravine-like  ruts  which  grace  the  roads 
of  Jersey — crossing  two  or  three  bridges  over  as  many  of  those 
tributaries  of  the  beautiful  Passaic,  which  water  this  superb 
snipe-country — and  reaching  at  least  a  sweep  of  smooth  level 
road  parallel  to  a  long  tract  of  meadows  under  the  widow  Mul- 
ford's.  And  here,  mort  de  ma  vie  !  that  was  a  shot  from  the 
snipe-ground,  and  right  on  our  beat,  too — Ay !  there  are  two 
guns,  and  two,  three,  pointers  ! — liver  and  white  a  brace,  and 
one  all  liver. 


196  TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK. 

"  I  know  them,"  Harry  said,  "  I  know  them,  good  shots  and 
hard  walkers  both,  but  a  little  too  much  of  the  old  school — a 
little  too  much  of  the  twaddle  and  potter  system.  Jem  Tickler, 
there,  used,  when  I  landed  here,  to  kill  as  many  birds  as  any 
shot  out  of  the  city — though  even  then  the  Jersey  boys,  poor 

Ward  and  Harry  T gave  him  no  chance  ;  but  now  heaven 

help  him !  Fat  Tom  here  would  get  over  more  ground,  and 
bag  more  snipe,  too,  in  a  day  !  The  other  is  a  canny  Scot, — I 
have  forgot  his  name,  but  he  shoots  well  and  walks  better. 
Never  mind !  we  can  outshoot  them,  I  believe  ;  and  I  am  sure 
we  can  outmanoeuvre  them.  Get  away  !  get  away.  Bob,"  as  he 
flanked  the  near-side  horse  under  the  collar  on  the  inside — "  get 
away  you  old  thief — we  must  forereach  on  them."  Away  we 
went  another  mile,  wheeled  short  to  the  left  hand  through  a 
small  bit  of  swampy  woodland,  and  over  a  rough  causeway, 
crossing  a  narrow  flaggy  bog,  with  three  straight  ditches,  and  a 
meandering  muddy  streamlet,  traversing  its  black  surface. 
"  Ha !  what's  John  at  there  3"  exclaimed  Harry,  pulling  short 
up,  and  pointing  to  that  worthy  crawling  on  all  fours  behind  a 
tuft  of  high  bullrushes  toward  the  circuitous  creek — "  There  are 
duck  there  for  a  thousand !" — and  as  he  spoke,  up  rose  with 
splash  and  quack  and  flutter,  four  or  five  long-winged  wild-fowl ; 
bang !  went  John's  long  duck-gun,  and  simultaneously  with  the 
report,  one  of  the  fowl  keeled  over,  killed  quite  dead,  two  oth- 
ers faltering  somewhat  in  their  flight,  and  hanging  on  the  air 
heavily  for  a  little  space ;  when  over  went  a  second  into  the 
creek,  driving  the  water  six  feet  into  the  air  in  a  bright  spark- 
ling shower. 

The  other  three,  including  the  hit  bird,  which  rallied  as  it 
flew,  dived  forward,  flying  very  fast,  obliquely  to  the  road ;  and 
to  my  great  surprise  Harry  put  the  whip  on  his  horses  with 
such  vigor  that  in  an  instant  both  were  on  the  gallop,  the  wag- 
on bouncing  and  rattling  violently  on  the  rude  log-floored  cause- 
way. An  instant's  thought  showed  me  his  object,  which  was 
to  weather  on  the  fowl  sufficiently  to  get  a  shot,  ere  they  should 
cross  the  road ;  although  I  marvelled  still  how  he  intended  to 
pull  up  from  the  furious  pace  at  which  he  was  going  in  time  to 
get  a  chance.  Little  space,  however,  had  I  for  amazement ;  for 
the  ducks,  which  had  not  risen  high  into  the  air,  were  forced  to 
cross  some  thirty  yards  ahead  of  us,  by  a  piece  of  tall  woodland, 
on  the  verge  of  which  were  several  woodcutters,  with  two  or 
three  large  fires  burning  among  the  brushwood.  "  Now,  Tom," 


TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK.  197 

cried  Harry,  feeling  his  horses'  mouths  as  he  spoke,  but  not  at- 
tempting to  pull  up ;  and  instantly  the  old  man's  heavy  double 
rose  steadily  but  quickly  to  his  face — bang !  neatly  aimed,  a 
yard  ahead  of  the  first  drake,  which  fell  quite  dead  into  the 
ditch  on  the  right  hand  of  the  causeway — bang !  right  across 
Harry's  face,  who  leaned  back  to  make  roonx^for  the  fat  fellow's 
shot,  so  perfectly  did  the  two  rare  and  crafty  sportsmen  com- 
prehend one  another — and  before  I  heard  the  close  report,  the 
second  wild-duck  slanted  down  wing-tipped  before  the  wind, 
into  the  flags  on  the  left  hand,  having  already  crossed  the  road 
when  the  shot  struck  him.  The  fifth  and  only  now  remaining 
bird,  which  had  been  touched  by  Van  Dyne's  first  discharge, 
alighting  in  the  marsh  not  far  from  his  crippled  comrade. 

"  Beautiful !  beautiful  indeed  !"  cried  I ;  "  that  was  the  very 
prettiest  thing — the  quickest,  smartest,  and  best  calculated  shoot- 
ing I  ever  yet  have  seen  !" 

"  We  have  done  that  same  once  or  twice  before  though — hey, 
Tom  ?"  replied  Harry,  pulling  his  horses  well  together,  and  ga- 
thering them  up  by  slow  degrees — not  coming  to  a  dead  stop 
till  we  had  passed  Tom's  first  bird,  some  six  yards  or  better. 
"  Now  jump  out,  all  of  you ;  we  have  no  time  to  lose  ;  no  not 
a  minute  !  for  we  must  bag  these  fowl ;  and  those  two  chaps 
we  saw  on  Mulford's  meadows,  are  racing  now  at  their  top  speed 
behind  that  hill,  to  cut  into  the  big  meadow  just  ahead  of  us, 
you  may  rely  on  that.  You,  Timothy,  drive  on  under  that  big 
pin  oak — take  off  the  bridles — halter  the  horses  to  the  tree,  not 
to  the  fence — and  put  their  sheets  and  hoods  on,  for,  early  as  it 
is,  the  flies  are  troublesome  already.  Then  mount  the  game- 
bags  and  be  ready — by  the  time  you're  on  foot  we  shall  be  with 
you.  Forester,  take  the  red  dog  to  Van  Dyne,  that  second  bird 
of  his  will  balk  him  else,  and  I  sha'nt  be  surprised  if  he  gets 
up  again  !  Pick  up  that  mallard  out  of  the  ditch  as  you  go  by 
— he  lies  quite  dead  at  the  foot  of  those  tall  reeds.  Come,  Tom, 
load  up  your  old  cannon,  and  we'll  take  Shot,  bag  that  wing- 
tipped  duck,  and  see  if  we  can't  nab  the  crippled  bird,  too  !  come 
along !" 

Off  we  set  without  further  parley ;  within  five  minutes  I  had 
bagged  Tom's  first,  a  rare  green-headed  Drake,  and  joined  Van 
Dyne,  who,  with  the  head  and  neck  of  his  first  bird  hanging  out 
of  his  breeches  pocket,  where,  in  default  of  game-bag,  he  had 
stowed  it,  was  just  in  the  act  of  pouring  a  double  handful  of 
BB  into  his  Queen's  Ann's  musket.  Before  he  had  loaded,  we 


198  TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK. 

heard  a  shot  across  the  road,  and  saw  the  fifth  bird  fall  to  Harry 
at  long  distance,  while  Shot  was  gently  mouthing  Draw's  se- 
cond duck,  to  his  unutterable  contentment.  We  had  some 
trouble  in  gathering  the  other,  for  it  was  merely  body-shot,  and 
that  not  mortally,  so  that  it  dived  like  a  6sh,  bothering  poor 
Chase  beyond  expression.  This  done,  we  re-united  our  forces, 
and  instantly  proceeded  to  the  big  meadow,  which  we  found,  as 
Harry  had  anticipated,  in  the  most  perfect  possible  condition — 
the  grass  was  short,  and  of  a  delicate  and  tender  green,  not  above 
ankle  deep,  with  a  rich  close  black  mould,  moist  and  soft  enough 
for  boring  everywhere,  under  foot — with,  at  rare  intervals,  a 
slank,  as  it  is  termed  in  Jersey,  or  hollow  winding  course,  in 
which  the  waters  have  lain  longer  than  elsewhere,  covered  with 
a  deep,  rust-colored  scum,  floating  upon  the  stagnant  pools.  We 
had  not  walked  ten  yards  before  a  bird  jumped  up  to  my  left 
hand,  which  I  cut  down — and  while  I  was  in  the  act  of  loading, 
another  and  another  rose,  but  scarcely  cleared  the  grass  ere  the 
unerring  shot  of  my  two  stanch  companions  had  stopped  their 
flight  forever.  Some  ten  yards  from  the  spot  on  which  my  bird 
had  fallen,  lay  one  of  these  wet  slanks  which  I  have  mentioned 
— Chase  drew  on  the  dead  bird  and  pointed — another  fluttered 
up  under  his  very  nose,  dodged  three  or  four  yards  to  and  fro, 
and  before  I  could  draw  my  trigger,  greatly  to  my  surprise, 
spread  out  his  wings  and  settled.  Harry  and  Tom  had  seen 
the  move,  and  walked  up  to  join  me  ;  just  as  they  came  Chase 
retrieved  the  snipe  I  had  shot,  and  when  I  had  entombed  it  in 
my  pocket,  we  moved  on  all  abreast.  Skeap  !  skeap  !  skeap  ! 
Up  they  jumped,  not  six  yards  from  our  feet,  positively  in  a 
flock,  their  bright  white  bellies  glancing  in  the  sun,  twenty  at 
least  in  number  Six  barrels  were  discharged,  and  six  birds  fell ; 
we  loaded  and  moved  on,  the  dogs  drawing  at  every  step,  back- 
ing and  pointing,  so  foiled  was  the  ground  with  the  close  scent ; 
again,  before  we  had  gathered  the  fruit  of  our  first  volley,  a 
dozen  birds  rose  altogether ;  again  six  barrels  bellowed  across 
the  plain,  and  again  Tom  and  Harry  slew  their  shots  right  and 
left,  while  I,  alas  !  shooting  too  quick,  missed  one !  I  know 
what  I  aver  will  hardly  be  believed,  but  it  is  true,  notwithstand- 
ing ;  a  third  time  the  same  thing  happened,  except  that  instead 
of  twelve,  thirty  or  forty  birds  rose  at  the  least,  six  of  which  came 
again  to  earth,  within,  at  farthest,  thirty  paces — making  an 
aggregate  of  eighteen  shots,  fired  in  less,  assuredly,  than  so 
many  minutes,  and  seventeen  birds  fairly  brought  to  bag.  These 


TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK.  199 

pocketed,  by  twos  and  threes  Van  Dyne  had  marked  the  others 
down  in  every  quarter  of  the  meadow — and,  breaking  off,  singly 
or  in  pairs,  we  worked  our  will  with  them.  So  hard,  however, 
did  they  lie,  that  many  could  not  be  got  up  again  at  all.  In 
one  instance  I  had  marked  four,  as  I  thought,  to  a  yard,  between 
three  little  stakes,  placed  in  the  angles  of  a  plat,  not  above 
twenty  paces  in  diameter — taking  Van  Dyne  along  with  me, 
who  is  so  capital  a  marker  that  for  a  dead  bird  I  would  back 
him  against  any  retriever  living— I  went  without  a  dog  to  walk 
them  up.  But  no  !  I  quartered  the  ground,  re-quartered  it, 
crossed  it  a  third  time,  and  was  just  quitting  it  despairing,  when 
a  loud  shout  from  John,  a  pace  or  two  behind,  warmed  me  they 
were  on  wing !  Two  crossed  me  to  the  right,  one  of  which 
dropped  to  John's  Queen  Ann  almost  as  soon  as  I  caught  sight 
of  them,  and  one  to  my  left.  At  the  latter  I  shot  first,  and, 
without  waiting  to  note  the  effect  of  my  discharge,  turned 
quickly  and  fired  at  the  other.  Him  I  saw  drop,  for  the  smoke 
drifted,  and  as  I  turned  my  head,  I  scarcely  can  believe  it  now, 
I  saw  my  first  bird  falling.  I  concluded  he  had  fluttered  on 
some  small  space,  but  John  Van  Dyne  swears  point  blank  that 
I  shot  so  quick  that  the  second  bird  was  on  the  ground  before 
the  first  had  reached  it.  In  this — a  solitary  case,  however — I 
fear  John's  famed  veracity  will  scarce  obtain  for  him  that  credit, 
or  for  me  that  renown,  to  which  he  deemed  us  both  entitled. 

Before  eleven  of  the  clock,  we  had  bagged  forty-seven  birds  ; 
we  sat  down  in  the  shade  of  the  big  pin  oak,  and  fed  deliciously, 
and  went  our  way  rejoicing,  toward  the  upper  meadows,  fully 
expecting  that  before  returning  we  should  have  doubled  our  bag. 

But,  alas  !  the  hopes  of  men  ! — Troy  meadows  were  too  dry 
— Persipany  too  wet — Loise's  had  been  beat  already,  and  not 
one  snipe  did  we  even  see  or  hear,  nor  one  head  of  game  did  we 
bag ;  the  morning's  sport,  however,  had  put  us  in  such  merry 
mood  that  we  regarded  not  the  evening's  disappointment,  and 
we  sat  down  in  great  glee  to  supper.  What  we  devoured,  or 
what  we  drank,  it  boots  not  to  record ;  but  it  was  late  at  night 
before  the  horses  were  ordered,  and  we  prepared  for  a  start. 

After  the  horses  were  announced  as  ready,  somewhat  to  my 
surprise,  Harry  took  old  Tom  aside,  and  was  engaged  for  some 
time  in  deep  conversation  ;  and  when  they  had  got  through  with 
it,  Harry  shook  him  very  warmly  by  the  hand,  saying — 

"  Well,  Tom,  I  am  sincerely  obliged  to  you  ;  and  it  is  not  the 
first  time  either." 


£00  TOM  DRAW'S  VISIT  TO  PINE  BROOK. 

"  Well,  well,  boy,"  responded  Tom,  "I  guess  it  'taint  the  first 
time  as  you've  said  so,  though  I  don't  know  right  well  what  for 
neither.  Any  how,  I  hope  't  won't  be  the  last  time  as  I'll  fix 
you  as  you  wants  to  be.  But  come,  it's  gittin'  late,  and  I've  got 
to  drive  Hard's  horse  over  to  Paterson  to-night." 

."  Oh,  that  will  not  be  much,"  said  Harry.  "  It  is  but  nine 
miles,  and  we  are  twenty  from  New  York." 

"  Any  how,  we  must  take  a  partin'  drink,  and  I  stands  treat. 
I  showed  Beers  Hard  how  to  make  that  egg  nog.  Timothy — 
Timothy,  you  darned  critter,  bring  in  that  ere  egg  nog.'* 

This  was  soon  done,  and  Tom,  replenishing  all  the  glasses  to 
the  brim,  said  very  solemnly,  "  this  is  a  toast,  boys,  now  a  raal 
bumper." 

Harry  grinned  conscious.     I  stood,  waiting,  wondering. 

"Here's  luck !"  said  Tom,  "luck  to  Harry  Archer,  a  land- 
holder in  our  own  old  Orange  !" 

The  toast  was  quaffed  in  an  instant ;  and,  as  I  drew  my  breath, 
I  said — 

"  Well,  Harry,  I  congratulate  you,  truly.  So  you  have  bought 
the  Jem  Burt  Place  ?" 

"  Thanks  to  old  Tom,  dog  cheap  !"  replied  Archer  ;  "  and  I 
have  only  to  say,  farther,  that  early  in  the  Autumn,  I  hope  to 
introduce  you,  and  all  my  old  friends,  to  the  interior  of  the  new 
box." 


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engraved  plate  of  Flies,  beautifully  colored,  containing  directions  for 
making  artificial  Flies,  Fly  Fishing,  Trolling,  &c.,  thus  rendering  Frank 
Forester's  work  on  Fish  and  Fishing  the  most  valuable  book  extant. 
Handsomely  bound  in  cloth,  uniform  with  the  other  works. 

This  book,  with  that  to  which  it  is  an  indispensable  appendix,  must  be 
the  "vade  mecum"  of  the  piscatorial  sportsman,  on  the  trip  ho  is  just 
now  meditating  to  Hamilton  County,  or  farther  or  nearer  afield.  The 
frontispiece  to  the  supplement  presents  twenty-four  varieties  of  artificial 
flies,  colored  according  to  nature,  and  lucidly  described  in  the  body  of 
the  book.— JV.  Y.  Express. 


OR, 

STUDIES    OF    THE     TOWN. 

BY    AN    OPERA-GOKR. 

WITH     ILLUSTRATIONS     BY     DARLEY. 
First    Series    in    One    Volume,    Cloth,  price   $1   33. 

O"  This  is  a  work  for  the  express  entertainment  of  all 
spinsters  who  wish  husbands  ;  all  belles  who  admire  their  own 
charms ;  all  beaux  who  are  captivated  with  their  own  por- 
traits ;  all  old  ladies  who  wish  to  be  young ;  all  authors 
emulous  of  their  own  works  ;  all  fashionists  in  love  with  their 
own  position  ;  all  misses  eager  to  be  seen  ;  all  rich  men  who 
are  lovers  of  their  own  money ;  all  bachelors  looking  for  a 
fortune;  all  poets  infatuated  with  their  powers;  all  critics 
confident  of  their  taste  ;  and  all  sensible  men  who  are  content 
to  be  honest. 

©pttuottjs  of  tfte  Press. 

"  THB  LORGNETTE,"  by  an  Opera-Goer,  has  won  a  flattering  reputation 
for  its  quiet,  mischievous  humor,  its  lively  sketches  of  fashionable  follies, 
its  shrewd  delineations  of  character,  and  its  mastery  of  a  graceful,  trans- 
parent, healthy  English  style.  It  speaks  well  for  the  versatility  of  lite- 
rary talent  among  us,  that  nearly  a  score  of  the  wits  of  Gotham  have 
had  the  credit  of  its  paternity.  The  author  has  no  reason  to  be  ashamed 
of  his  production.  A  second  series  is  announced  by  Stringer  &  Town- 
send,  of  which  we  have  received  the  first  number,  devoted  to  the  mys- 
teries of  May  moving,  and  the  still  more  profound  mysteries  of  the  Polka 
and  the  Polkists.— JV.  Y.  Tribune. 

Anything  that  grows  in  value  with  progressing,  as  does  the  "  LORG- 
NETTE," is  note-worthy  in  these  tapering  times  ;  and  why  we  have  not 
spoken  of  the  numbers  as  they  have  appeared,  is  simply  because  we 
have  not  received  them ;  for  they  are  of  a  Salmagundi  spiciness,  that  it 
were  dull  knowingly  to  overlook.  The  sketches  of  a  "  Bostonian,"  a 
"  Philadelphian,"  and  other  «•  Strangers  in  Town,"  as  estimated  in  New 
York,  are  truly  capital.— .Home  Journal. 

The  fact  that  the  "  LORGNETTE  "  has  thorough  experience— that  he 
has  been  "in,"  "  of,"  and  "  through,"  as  well  as  recently  so  far  "  above," 
the  follies  which  he  treats  of  so  feelingly — of  course  gives  weight  and 
efficacy  to  his  opinions.  But  we  confess  to  have  been  strangely  affected 
by  these  writings,  previously  to  any  knowledge  of  their  source.  There 
seems  to  be  a  subtle  intrinsic  power  in  their  half-earnest  expressions, 
independent  of,  and  far  superior  to  any  extraneous  authority. 

Their  unusual  combination  of  strength,  delicacy,  and  refinement,  is 
quite  consoling;  and  we  rejoice  that  one  writer  of  these  days  can  be  se- 
vere, without  forgetting  the  gentleman,  and  can  demonstrate  that  wit  is 
most  keen  and  sparkling,  when  set  in  English,  "  pure  and  undented."-— 
Literary  World. 


THE 


, 

ffingojrae 


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©ptntong  of  tfje 

THE  INTERNATIONAL  FOR  OCTOBER.  New  York:  Stringer  &  Town- 
send.  This  is  the  best  International  yet  issued,  and  the  International  is 
the  best  American  Periodical  now  published.  It  is  an  invaluable  Mis- 
cellany of  original  and  eclectic  matter,  and  cheap,  almost  without  a 
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It  is  seldom  that  such  an  amount  of  really  good  matter  is  collected  in  so 
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THE  INTERNATIONAL  MAGAZINE.— The  October  number  of  this  most 
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Broadway.  Its  contents  embrace  the  cream  of  all  the  foreign  and  na- 
tive magazines,  and  it  is  decidedly  the  best  publication  of  the  kind  ever 
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—  Wash.  Rep. 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

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Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


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